Roommates
by Night Fury Guardian
Summary: A Shingeki No Kyojin AU. Mikasa falls down on her luck, losing her job and facing the reality that she'll soon be homeless. After one late night conversation together, Eren invites her to be his roommate. But they both learn the ups and downs of living with the opposite gender. Rated M for...possible future stuff. Sucky summary, I know.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N:** Hi! It's **Night Fury Guardian** with another EreMika multi-chapter! I know, I know I need to stop. I have way too many projects right now._

_But I couldn't resist with this one! I just loved the idea! And I had to include a coffee shop because...well, I guess because I personally love coffee!_

_Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

It was chilly, especially for mid-August. The weather was still enjoyable temperature wise, relenting from harsh heat of summer as the signs of fall soon approached. However, when the skies clouded up, it wasn't long before the first rain drop descended, followed immediately by its companions.

A young oriental girl raced down the street as rain quickly began to pour. Her name was Mikasa Ackerman, a sophmore in college who lived alone in a small apartment. It wasn't easy for her to afford, working at a small restaurant when she wasn't going to school. Her life stayed rather hectic, little chance for even a day to herself ever presenting itself.

She came to a halt when she spotted a small café on the other side of the street. The sign read _'open',_ and she smiled. Maybe she could get some quiet here, she thought as she quickly hurried across the street.

Mikasa gently opened the door to the coffee shop she had spotted from across the street. She silently made her way inside, hanging up her dripping jacket on the coat rack and plopped down in an empty chair on the main counter. Well, at least she was out of the rain now.

"What can I get for you, miss?" The blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy at the counter said with a friendly smile.

"Huh?!" She responded, being snapped to attention by his voice. His question processed in her mind for a few moments.

"Uhhh, how much is a small cup?"

He told her the price.

"Okay," Mikasa said, digging her pockets for exact change. "I'll take a small. Black, please."

"Alright." The blonde replied, taking the change from her with a smile. "Be right back."

While she waited, Mikasa pulled out her history textbook. She had to study for her exam tomorrow. So far this was the only place quiet enough for her to even think in. And as long as she paid for something, surely she wouldn't be a problem.

Her eyes scanned for the nearest clock. It read six o' clock.

_'Good. I have a few hours before I have to get to work.'_

_"_Here you are." The blonde said as he placed the coffee in front of her.

"Thank you." she said, and he left to attend to the other customers.

As she sat sipping her hot drink, her optimism faded when she realized how much she needed to review.

_'This will take all night!'_

Still, she opened it to her desired page and began her cram session. She had to pass that exam tomorrow.

* * *

"Hey, Eren." Armin greeted as Eren walked in through the back door of the café, unusually on time for his shift. He normally ran a few minutes late.

"Hey." Eren replied as he removed his wet jacket and ear buds. "How's it been today?"

"Slow." The blonde answered. "Just slow."

"My type of business." Eren replied, putting on his required black apron.

"Eren, that's not how a business makes money." Armin sighed. "Well, I'd better get going. Erwin is expecting me in an hour."

Erwin Smith was Armin's adoptive dad and the owner of this café. He was a pretty cool guy and the only father figure Armin had ever known. Erwin had worked with his grandfather for a few years before old Grandpa Arlert died, leaving a seven year old Armin an orphan. Erwin adopted the boy, having grown quite fond of the kid. Eren personally respected Erwin, especially after seeing how he'd taken care of his best friend.

"Oh, Eren?" Armin called to Eren."Make sure you take care of that girl over there, okay?"

The brown haired boy followed the finger that was pointing to a black haired girl sitting at the counter, hair hiding her face.

"Who is she?" Eren asked, eyebrows raised. "Your crush?"

"I don't know her. I've never met her until today." Armin replied as he took another glance at her. "But just let her stay here until you have to close, okay? She seems like she needs it."

"Sure, sure." Eren replied."Whatever."

Armin left to meet up with Erwin shortly after, leaving Eren the only worker left at the café.The best part about this shift was that he didn't have to deal with too many people. All he really did this time of night was clean up.

He had some more customers came in after Armin left. A regular named Sasha, who brought her study group of four with her. Then there was Annie, a girl that he'd shared a couple of classes at the college with.

As the hour of closing arrived and he started to tidy up, he finally noticed the black haired girl again. How long had she been here? He looked at the clock. It was now 12:30 AM. Thirty minutes until closing time. Eren had come in at 8 that evening, and Armin said that she'd already been here for a couple of hours. He noted the book she was reading. It looked like it was a college textbook.

_'She must be studying for an exam...'_ he thought to himself.

Despite his usual stand-offish demeanor, he found himself walking over to her.

"Hey, do you want another cup?" He asked, in lack of anything better to say.

Mikasa was startled by the sudden voice, having been deep into thought. She reluctantly glanced up to see a boy with messy brown hair and beautiful green eyes.

"I can't afford another cup. I didn't bring enough change..." she answered honestly, beginning to gather her belongings. She must be in his way. "I'm sorry. I'm in the way of your business."

"No! No!" The boy immediately said, waving his hands. "You're absolutely fine. You're not bothering anything. And I can give you a cup on the house, if you want."

Mikasa paused for a moment. "Your boss won't be upset...?"

The boy snorted. "Please. My boss is my best friend's dad. Neither of them will care. Now do you want a cup?"

She nodded. "Yes, please."

"How do you like it?"

"Black, please."

"Coming right up." The boy left the table, leaving Mikasa at the small table.

_'She's...really pretty...'_ he thought to himself as he poured the hot, caffeinated drink into a new Styrofoam cup. Her eyes were a stormy grey, her hair a raven black, which contrasted greatly with her porcelain skin.

He shortly returned with the new cup, steaming hot, and set it on the table in front of her.

"Thanks." She said, picking it up and taking a sip of the hot drink. It felt good as it hit the bottom of her stomach, heating her cold, damp body.

"No problem." He replied, turning around to the sink to wet his rag. He slowly began to wipe off the counters and tables. It was just the two of them in there now, the normal quiet now becoming pure silence, save for the running water and chairs moving occasionally.

Mikasa returned to her history book, jotting down every note she could in her mind. She was almost finished with the last chapter.

Twenty minutes later, after what seemed an eternity, she closed the book, a relieved smile on her face as she stretched her arms.

"I see someone finished their reading assignment."

She glanced up at brown haired boy as he finished the last of the dishes. He had a crooked smile on his face when he looked at her.

"Yes, I did!" Mikasa replied, sounding proud of herself. "I think I'm ready for that exam tomorrow."

"That's good." He commented. "That's the attitude you have to have when you face a challenge."

Mikasa slowly got up from her seat, taking her book and putting it in her bag. She began to walk toward the exit, him following behind her. When she stepped out, she was very relieved to see that she wouldn't be walking home in the rain.

"You got done just in time for closing."

"Thank you for letting me stay." she told him as he turned the lights out and locked the front door of the shop. "I'm really grateful to your kindness."

"Oh, it wasn't a problem at all." The boy mumbled to her with an embarrassed expression on his face as he held out his hand awkwardly. "Eren."

"I'm Mikasa." She replied, her tiny hand swallowed by his large, warm one in a hand shake.

"Mikasa..." he repeated, testing the name on his lips. "That's a pretty name."

"Thanks." Mikasa replied, hiding the light pink that colored her face. No one had ever complimented her like that before."Anyway, I had better go. I don't have long before I have to go to work. But maybe...I'll see you around."

"Yeah. See you." He called as she turned around and walked down the sidewalk, away from the café.

_'It's one o' clock in the morning and that girl is going to work?'_ Eren pondered as he watched her figure disappear from sight.

He stood there momentarily, wondering if she'd be back tomorrow. As strange as it seemed, even though he'd just met her, she fascinated him.

He climbed onto his bike which was parked on the side of the building and rode to his small apartment, just a couple of blocks away. He had just enough time to finish his English paper and get some sleep.

* * *

_**A/N:** Anyway, here's chapter 1. It's short now, sorry but I'm working on chapter 2 like literally, right now. _

_I hope you all enjoyed this. Please read & review!_

_See ya later! ^-^_


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N:** Hi! It's chapter two! Told you all that I was working on it! I'm surprised at how many of you have already started following this story. This time last year, I had probably one follower last year. But it makes me glad that so many want me to continue this! And all your reviews are appreciated!  
_

_Anyway, chapter two :)_

* * *

Mikasa sighed loudly as she walked the last block she had left. Her destination was the restaurant that she worked at. It didn't make much money, but it was the best job she could find. And it kept a roof over her head and her bills paid. Barely.

To be honest, she really didn't feel like working tonight. But it was Friday. She could sleep in a little tomorrow with worrying about classes.

Of course she couldn't complain too much. She'd finished all of this week's assignments. And today, after a week of waiting, she finally got her history exam grade; she passed with flying colors. It made her happy, and she owed it all to that boy who'd let her study at that coffee shop last week. Eren...

"Mikasa!" Hanji called to her, just as Mikasa walked through the door to sign in."You just barely made it!"

"I'm sorry, Hanji." The young girl apologized as she tied on her apron. But before she could set off to do her duties, Hanji stopped her. "Mikasa, could you come over here please?"

The black haired girl frowned in confusion, but did as she was told. There was something off about Hanji's normally cheerful personality, Mikasa could feel it.

"Mikasa, you're a great worker." Hanji began in a soft voice. "But...business has been slow lately and...I'm afraid that I have to let you go, Mikasa."

Mikasa felt her regular poker face slip away to reveal her shock. Hanji's face was full of sadness as she placed a hand on Mikasa's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Mikasa."

The oriental girl stood there for a moment while her brain processed this information. She...lost her job? But...how was she going to pay for her apartment? It was due in a couple of days...

She finally just nodded silently, untying her apron and neatly folding it. With a straight face, she handed it to her former boss before leaving the restaurant into the cold night air.

Mikasa slowly ambled away from the small building, sadness filling her. She couldn't blame Hanji though, she was just doing what was best for the business. Still, Mikasa couldn't help but feel the stress building inside her. How was she going to pay her rent now?

As if she had brought her mood to life, rain slowly began to fall down on her.

'Rain again?' Mikasa internally groaned as she pulled her thin jacket tighter to her. However, she didn't move any faster; she had such a long walk, she'd be soaked either way. And she was too upset to run anyway.

It was like this just a week ago. When she'd been desperate to study, yet she was unable due to noisy neighbors deciding to be assholes. That's when she'd found that little shop to study in...

Suddenly, there it was. The small café she had visited just a week ago. Where she'd met that boy. Eren.

Her feet stepped toward the small coffee shop, without any real permission from her brain. Eren had been so kind to her, let her stay there when she had nowhere left to go. And now she was more lost than she had been in years. Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the glass door.

Mikasa stood there, looking inside. All the lights were out, so it was obviously closed. She hadn't thought to check the time, so she glanced down at her watch.

_'Right. It closes at one.'_

For some unknown reason, she felt her hopes crushed. Getting out of the doorway, she curled up into a ball, hugging her knees and put her head down.

What she didn't know however, was that the very boy that she'd been wanting to see was coming down the sidewalk that very moment.

_'Damn.'_ Eren thought to himself as he dragged himself through the rain. '_I can't believe that I left my phone. Ugh, what a drag.'_

As he rounded the corner, he was surprised to see a figure balled up in front of the shop.

_'What...what the hell?!'_

He cautiously walked toward the person, not knowing whether it was a mugger waiting to strike or an old homeless lady. Whoever it was didn't look up at the sound of his footsteps, so he spoke. "Is...is there something...wrong?"

It took her a moment, but she recognized his voice. Eren! But what was he doing here? Her head snapped up to see him, kneeling in front of her. Eren's eyes grew wide with surprise as he realized who it was.

"M-Mikasa?" He said, with shock and recognition. "What're you doing out here? Isn't it a little late for coffee? Or rather early? It's nearly 2 AM."

"I...I..." Mikasa began, words failing her. What was she was going to say? She met him only once, a week prior.

Eren kept waiting on her reply, but she never made one. Finally, he jumped up, pulled out his keys, and unlocked the front door. He whirled around and pulled the drenched girl to her feet by one of her arms.

"Wh-what are you-?!"

"You're going to get sick out here. Come on!"

Eren led her inside the empty shop, keeping a firm grasp on her arm. When they reached the counter, in fact the very spot that she sat the day they met, he finally let go.

"Hold on, I'll go get a heater." Eren said, dashing to the back room. Mikasa held her hand out, as if to tell him to stop. She didn't want to put him through the trouble. Shivering set in her body as she realized how soaked and cold she was.

He returned a couple minutes later with a small portable heater and a blanket.

"Here." He said, draping the blanket over her drenched figure. "We're lucky we have that emergency kit."

Warmth seemed to immediately envelope her. Eren walked back behind the counter to plug in the heater, removing his own wet jacket in the mean time.

"Do you want something to drink?" He asked her.

"I don't have any-" Mikasa began before the brunette interrupted her.

"Don't worry about the money. I'll take care of it."

"But-!"

"You know what? I'm making you one anyway. And I'm going to surprise you. So deal with it."

Mikasa became silent at his insistence and only nodded her head in response.

Eren walked over to the coffee machine and started brewing a fresh pot. As he patiently waited, his eyes glanced over to her again. Something told him that she needed more than just coffee.

Once the coffee was ready, he poured some into the biggest mug he could find. After he added some sugar and some French vanilla flavored creamer, he held the big mug out to her. "Enjoy."

"Thank you." Mikasa said, taking the huge mug from him and wondering how she'd drink all this. She brought the rim to her lips, hot steam radiating from the coffee as she blew gently to cool it off. When she took a sip, she was surprised at how it tasted.

"It's...sweet..." she murmured. She had always drank her coffee black and grew accustomed to the bitter taste.

"Yeah." Eren said with a timid smile. "You looked like you could use something sweet. Though something tells me that you need more than something to drink."

"Are you a mind reader or something?" She joked with a small smile of her own.

He snorted. "No. I just pay attention."

He looked at her with real concern in his eyes. She couldn't help but think that he had beautiful eyes. Her smile soon faded as reality set in again.

"I'm...sorry..." Mikasa said quietly, her eyes feeling as though they were starting to tear up. She immediately looked down, not wanting him to see her like this.

"M-Mikasa?" Eren asked uncertainly, afraid he'd done something to upset her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry...it's just...I lost my job tonight..." She had no idea why she was confiding in a person she barely knew, but the words continued to flow out. She felt like she could trust him. "I know that my boss didn't want to, she had no choice because of business. And now my rent is coming up. I barely had enough money to scrape through a month when I was working! What am I going to do now!?"

Mikasa had gone from very calm and collected to hysterically panicking. Eren wasn't sure exactly what to say really. She seemed so stressed out, and that was normal. She'd had too much shit piled on her for too long, and she didn't seem like the type to complain. She seemed to be the 'suffer in silence' type.

She shouldn't have to go through this alone, Eren thought. At the very least, she should have a roommate to help split the bills, make things easier...

An idea suddenly popped into Eren's mind.

Mikasa had buried herself in that blanket, trying hard to hold back the sobs. She had worked so hard for so long, and for what? Look at where she was. How was she ever going to get through this?

"Ummm...Mikasa?" Eren said to her calmly, stretching his hand out to gently pat hers. "Relax. Breathe. It'll all work out so just calm down."

'I forgot all about him!' She thought to herself. 'I can't believe that I made such a fool out of myself!'

The warmth of his hand was comforting for the few short moments it lasted. Taking deep breaths, she collected herself and looked up at him. She had always been good at recovering her composure; that was the key to her survival.

"Forgive me..." she said. "I don't...I don't know what came over me."

Eren looked into her eyes with his own green ones. Mikasa was surprised at this; for as long as she could remember, most people avoided direct eye contact with her, generally turning away. But now, Mikasa was the one who felt the need to break contact. She didn't though, and she held his gaze.

"You're human, Mikasa." He began. "From what I've picked up on you, well...I have to say you seem like a strong person. But even strong people have days where they just need a break."

"B-but I can't afford a break!" Mikasa interrupted. "My rent is coming up and even if I did get another job, I wouldn't be able to make enough. Unless I skipped classes until I had the money."

"Well...I know...that we just met..." Eren began, his cheeks turning red. He had no clue what he was doing exactly, but this girl needed someone to help. "But...if you need a place...to stay...then...how about moving into my apartment? There's two bedrooms and two baths so...you'd have privacy. What...what do you say?"

Mikasa struggled to keep her emotional mask on, wanting to let it fall and show her pure shock at his suggestion. Move in with him? But...they barely knew each other!

"Ummm...I'm not so...sure..." Mikasa replied nervously.

"I...know...It was a crazy idea." Eren agreed hesitantly. "Moving in with a guy you barely know. I...should've been more considerate of how you'd feel at that suggestion."

_'I'm a fucking idiot.'_ He thought to himself, fists clenched in his irritation with himself. Really, what had he been expecting? Her to jump on board and say 'sure'? It was a crazy idea that went through his mind that should have never been spoken out loud.

_'What girl in her right mind would move in with a stranger anyway?'_

Mikasa shyly looked at him, his gaze averted downwards. His cheeks were still flaming red and he looked ready to run away right then.

She wondered why he'd even stick his neck out for her. Was there a motive behind his generosity? It wasn't unheard of that men would do lots of things to make a girl feel indebted to them. Then they'd use the girl for whatever they'd want. She'd seen it happen many times to people she'd known.

But...

His eyes were...innocent when he'd made that suggestion. Like he truly wanted to help out of the kindness of his heart. Her instincts told her that he was a good person, that he wouldn't take advantage of her.

'But what if I'm wrong?'

Out of the blue, she remembered something that her mother had told her. Way back when she was still a small child.

_'You can't be afraid to be wrong, sweetie. All you can do is trust your own judgement.'_

Those words of her mother echoed through her mind, bringing her closer and closer to her decision.

_'I really don't have much of a choice right now.'_

"Eren..." Mikasa said, swallowing her pride. "If...it's alright with you...I...I'd like that..."

Eren's head snapped up to look at her. "Are...are you sure...?"

"If you're...okay with it..." Mikasa said. "Then yes. I'm sure."

* * *

"It's only a couple of blocks away." Eren called to her as she followed beside him, letting him pull her along by her hand.

The oriental girl paid close attention to her surroundings as he guided her to his house. It was a habit of hers, having lived in some shady neighborhoods since she turned ten. Especially the one her current apartment was in.

"Here we are." He said, stopping in front of a small building and pulling the keys out of his pocket to unlock the door. "I'll make you a copy of the key tomorrow."

"Okay. That would be easier."

He held the door open, gesturing for her to go ahead inside. Mikasa hurried inside from the rain, Eren following behind her and closing the door. He felt along the wall for the light switch, flipping it on when he found it.

Mikasa looked around the small apartment room. She was a little amazed at how much nicer this was than the one she lived at. Then again, this one was probably more than she could have afforded.

"Well...make yourself at home." Eren said as he took his wet jacket and hung it on the coat rack. When he turned around, he took in her drenched appearance. "You should get out of those clothes. You'll get sick."

Heat rose to the oriental girl's face. She knew that he didn't mean the words in that sense, but it still sent waves of embarrassment through her.

"But I don't have any clothes. All mine are back at my apartment." Mikasa pointed out for the third time. When they'd left the shop, she had asked to go by her apartment, to get some clothes before they went back to his. But Eren had insisted to get her back to his place so she could get out of the rain. Besides, her clothes would get soaking wet in the process, defeating the purpose for fetching them to begin with.

"Wait here." Eren told her, quickly running to one of the bedrooms. Mikasa merely stood by the front door, observing the small apartment. She had to admit that he seemed to keep it up, everything clean and had its own place.

On the table next to his couch were two framed pictures. She walked over to look at them. One was a picture of Eren in his graduation cap and gown, alongside a familiar blonde haired boy. She recognized him as the other boy that worked at the café. There were two men on their sides; the one beside Eren had short blonde hair, brown eyes, and a mustache while the one on his friend's side also had blonde hair, but his hair was longer and parted neatly to the side. His eyes were icy blue.

The other was what appeared to be Eren as a little boy with who she assumed were his parents. The woman looked just like him, save for her hair was a slightly lighter shade of brown and her eyes were a different color. The man didn't look too much like Eren at all; obviously he took after his mother.

The sound of footsteps were coming closer. Mikasa quickly took a step away so as not to appear noisy.

"Here." Eren mumbled, handing her a bundle of cloth. "They might be too big on you, but its all I've got."

"That's fine." Mikasa replied. "Thank you very much."

"Don't mention it. Here. I'll show you to your room."

Eren led her down the hallway to "Here's your room. The bathroom is right next door. There's some towels, and I think there's an overnight kit in there until we can get your stuff."

"Alright. Thanks."

"I'll leave you so you can...uhhh change." Ears red, he immediately spun around and walked back into the living room.  
Mikasa went into the bathroom first, stripping herself of her drenched clothing. Unfolding the clothing that Eren had given her revealed a pair of light grey sweats and a white Emery T-shirt. She quickly slipped the dry clothing on while hanging her wet clothing to dry on the shower doors. After wringing her dripping hair out, Mikasa walked out into the hallway, wondering if Eren had already gone to sleep. She walked into the living room area to see Eren sitting on the couch, watching TV.

Eren looked away from the screen when she came into view. Heat creeped onto his face at the sight of her. Even in just sweats and T-shirt she managed to look pretty. Fortunately for him, Mikasa was busy studying her new surroundings.

"Help yourself to anything, Mikasa." He said. "This...this is your home as long as you want it to be."

"Okay..." she murmured, eyes still looking around.

"You can sit down, you know." Eren told her, noticing her reluctance. "I'm not going to bite you or anything."

Mikasa's face turned pink momentarily with embarrassment as she slowly walked over to the couch. She hesitantly sat on the opposite end of him, seeming a little uncomfortable. But she might as well get used to it, since they're living together now.

It sounded so weird when she actually thought it to herself.

"What are you watching?" She asked.

"Nothing right now." He answered, scrolling through the guide. "You see anything that you like?"

"I don't really watch TV."

Eren's eyes widened at her reply, curious. "Why not?"

"I haven't owned one since I was kid, and whenever I was in the same room with a TV, it was to watch the news."

"Oh...I guess...that'd be a good reason..." he trailed off, wondering about how she'd grown up. "Well, feel free to watch this one anytime. Unless it's during one of my shows."

"No problem there." was all she said.

Eren finally found some movie he wanted to watch so he left it on that channel. Mikasa watched the TV for a while but wasn't really paying attention to it. She finally closed her eyes, just listening to the sounds on the TV while sleep slowly claimed her body.

* * *

_**A/N:** How'd you like it? I hope I did as good of a job as chapter 1. Anyway, I have to go. First day of college (well, full-time) and I'm shaking with nervousness. I hope you all have a good day!_


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N:** So hopefully, this chapter will prove more eventful. It's basically just a day spent while our two heroes...bond, I guess. They get her stuff, go the grocery store...then come home to a surprise! LOL XD_

_I'm starting to wonder whether Eren is starting to seem lovesick. But he has his reasons; takes someone pretty special to capture his interest. 8cough cough* MIKASA._

_Anyway, enjoy! :)_

* * *

The morning light shined through the blinds of the large window onto Mikasa's sleeping face. Being a light sleeper, she squinted as the sun greeted her as she awoke from her eyes were half open, automatically scanning the room for the clock.

Her sleepy mind jolted awake when she saw the time.

"OH MY GOD! I'M LATE!" She shouted as she jumped up. Her mind still hadn't fully recalled yesterday's events so she was surprised when her feet hit something warm instead of the cold floor.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!" Eren screamed when her feet suddenly slammed down onto his stomach. She suddenly remembered that she wasn't in her own apartment anymore and realized that Eren had been asleep on the floor.

Mikasa immediately plopped backwards onto the couch as Eren groaned on the floor, holding his stomach. She leaned over him worriedly, wondering what she needed to do. He finally rolled over onto his side, rubbing his now sore abdomen.

"Fuck, I'm not a trampoline." He moaned before giving a small laugh. "Shit...what a wake up call..."

"I'm so sorry, Eren! I didn't mean to..."

"It's alright. You probably didn't know that I was there." He commented, cutting her off as he slowly sat up. Mikasa noticed when he rose to his feet that he had changed clothes since last night, now wearing gym shorts and a black T-shirt.

"What are you late for anyway?" He asked as he scratched his head, ruffling his already messy bed head. "It's Saturday."

"Huh?" Mikasa asked, having momentarily forgotten what she had panicked about. When his question processed, she turned red in shame and embarrassment. "I was going to say work...but...I don't have a job anymore." She sighed, shaking her head. "I made such a racket for nothing."

"Don't worry about it." Eren replied, looking around in the kitchen. He found a box of Cheerios and fixed himself a bowl. "If it makes you feel better, when I was nine, my parents woke up at midnight and found me in their closet doors. My dad asked me what I was doing and I told him that I was working on my dirt bike and needed the clutch."

Mikasa gave a small giggle at the thought of that. "What did they say?"

Eren grinned at the memory. "They both started giggling and my dad said-" he made his voice deep as he quoted his father- _'Eren, son. I respect your determination, but please. Just go to back to bed.'_"

Eren was glad when his funny impersonation of his dad made her laugh again. She had a very pretty smile. And a musical laugh, one he could listen to all day.

"Why were you on the floor anyway?"

Her inquiry drew him away from his internal admiration for her.

"I wanted to finish a rerun I was watching. Guess I fell asleep." He began to search the cabinets and refrigerator for more food in case she didn't like Cheerios, but didn't find anything else.

"All I have is Cheerios." Eren told Mikasa, an apologetic look on his face. "I guess I'll have to go to the grocery store." He made a face at the thought of going to the store. If there was one thing he disliked, it was grocery shopping. Mainly it was because of how crowded they seemed to get.

"I...can go with you..." Mikasa offered reluctantly. "If...you want that is."

"Ummm, sure thing." Eren said as he continued eating his breakfast. "We can go after we pick up your stuff. That cool?"

"Yeah. That's fine." Mikasa agreed, standing up and walking into the kitchen area with him. She poured herself some Cheerios and went to get the milk. When she opened the door, she was surprised to find that the milk was the only thing in the fridge.

"What do you live off of? Coffee and cereal?" She asked Eren as she poured the milk into her bowl. "All that's in here is milk and Cheerios."

"I usually just buy cheap stuff." Eren informed her with a shrug. "It's been just me, and I don't really see the point in making complicated meals for only myself. I'll have to start actually buying real food now." He grinned at her, pleased when she returned the smile with one of her own.

"I'll have to ask Armin if we can borrow his car." Eren pondered out loud. "So we can go get your things."

"Armin?" Mikasa asked.

"Yeah. He's my best friend, and his dad owns the coffee shop I work at. He works with me there, too."

"Oh! I remember him." Mikasa recalled. "He was working when I went last week for my cram session."

"Yeah. That's him." He finished the last spoonful and put his bowl in the sink. "Anyway, I'll call him and ask him. When do you want to go anyway?"

"We can go soon. I just want to get a shower first."

"Go ahead."

Mikasa jumped in the shower while Eren called Armin. Just as Eren expected, Armin was totally cool with letting them borrow the car. After telling Armin what time to bring it, he hung up and went to get dressed.

Eren sat on the couch for about fifteen minutes, playing Fruit Ninja on his phone. Mikasa finally came out, dressed in her blue jeans and the T-shirt he'd lent her. He was a little surprised to see her wearing it, but it still looked good on her. Hell, anything would look good on this girl.

"I'm ready." Mikasa said, adjusting the shoulder strap of her bag.

"How come you're wearing the shirt?" Eren asked out loud before blushing. "N-not that it looks bad on you...I was just wondering."

"Oh." She looked at her feet, feeling a little embarrassed. "Well...I...I really like their music."

"Really?"

"Yes. They're amazing."

"Glad you think so, too." Eren said. The honk of a car horn was heard from outside at that moment. "Oh, there's Armin! Lets go!"

* * *

"Okay, where did you say your apartment was?" Eren asked as he drove further into the neighbor of rundown houses and overgrown weeds.

"You can just pull up on the curve right here." Mikasa answered quietly. "It's this building here."

Eren pulled the car to the side of the road and parked. When he looked up at the building that Mikasa had pointed to, he was dumbfounded at how run down it was.

_'She's been living in a place like this?'_

He quietly followed behind her as she led him to her room. They walked down the hallway and up a flight of stairs before Mikasa finally stopped in front of a door.

"Here we go." Mikasa murmured, grabbing the knob and opening the door.

Eren raised an eyebrow. "You leave it unlocked?"

"I don't have anything valuable in here. What's the point of locking it?"

The two of them walked in, Mikasa avoiding Eren's eyes. After seeing where he lived, she felt so ashamed. She couldn't bring herself to look at him.

Eren was in pure shock at the place. Anyone could tell that major repairs needed doing. Like there were cracks in the ceiling, a couple of holes in the wall...probably mold somewhere. All the appliances appeared to be from the eighties.

Mikasa came back from he assumed her bedroom was holding three bags, stuffed with things.

"Where's the rest of your stuff?" Eren asked, noticing that the apartment was basically empty, save for the furniture. "In your room?" He made a move to walk back into where he assumed her room is before her quiet voice stopped him.

"This is it." Mikasa quietly replied.

"This...this is...all you have...?" Eren repeated as he stared in shock.

"Yeah." She answered, unwilling to look at him. Again, embarrassment flooded through her. She wanted to explain herself, why she lived in this neighborhood, why she didn't have anything aside from clothes...but she wasn't ready to go into details about her past with him.

Just as she thought, Eren was curious about her. Though he didn't want to be rude, so he walked over to her, hands held out.

"I can get those." He said softly.

He helped her carry her bags down the steps and to the car. Instead of popping the trunk, they just put the three bags into the backseat of the car.

Eren waited on Mikasa as she went to the building manager to return her key. Patiently, he stood by the car. He still couldn't put his mind around the fact that someone as nice as she was had lived in a place like this.

It was ten minutes later when she finally came back into sight. Eren was relieved, having been worried that something had happened to her. She seemed to have an annoyed expression on her face as she gazed straight ahead, not really looking at anything. It was as if she was avoiding something.

Eren looked around, wondering what she was annoyed at until he spotted a guy leaning against the wall. The guy was medium height and stocky, dressed in baggy clothes. His dirty blonde hair looked oily and greasy, and he smelled like he hadn't taken a bath in years. He smiled as his eyes rested on Mikasa.

"Hey there, Mikasa." Reggie called out to her. "Where were you last night, sugar?"

"Go to hell, Reggie."

Mikasa walked right past him without sparing even a glance. Eren swiftly walked toward them, not letting his guard down. He didn't like the way that this pervert was looking at Mikasa, and he wanted to be close enough to defend her. Reggie, however, refused to give up and caught up with the Asian girl.

"I was talking to you, baby." He said slowly, taking a step in front of her. "So I suggest you answer me."

Eren could almost see the tension in Mikasa's body as she took a step away from Reggie. The guy clearly didn't get the message and roughly grabbed her arm. Mikasa tried jerking her arm away, but with no success. Her arm was curled back, preparing to strike but Eren jumped into action first.

"Let go of her!" Eren demanded, roughly taking hold of the guy's wrist. This creep needed to back off and leave Mikasa be.

"Oh, ho, ho." Reggie chuckled, turning to face Eren. "I see where you were last night. You lost one job so you took a more profitable job, huh? You little tramp."

"DON'T CALL HER SHIT LIKE THAT!" Eren exploded, shoving Reggie away to the ground, away from Mikasa.

Reggie crashed among the garbage cans before immediately jumping to his feet. He held his fists up, ready to fight. "Come on, punk. Let's go!"

Eren started to walk toward him until Mikasa stepped between them, having to literally wrap her arms around Eren to stop him. Normally, she would've been embarrassed at such an action, but she was too concerned for her friend's sake to care. "Eren, stop." She pleaded. "He's not worth it."

Eren had to take a couple of deep breaths in order to calm down. When he could think clearly, he looked at her and nodded his head before he turned around and walked with Mikasa back to the car.

"That's right, punk! You better run and not come back!" Reggie shouted as they walked off.

It took Eren every ounce of his self-control not to turn around and punch that son of a bitch in his face.

Eren opened the passenger side door for Mikasa before walking over to the driver's side. He was still fuming when he got in and started the car.

"Eren, calm down." Mikasa said softly. He was surprised that his body actually responded to her words.

"You lived here, all this time..." Eren pondered out loud. He turned to look into her gray eyes.

"A girl shouldn't live somewhere like this." Eren finally said, his tone quiet at first before the venom started to appear. "With creeps like that...and you were walking alone to and from work?!"

Mikasa shrugged. "I just ignore them."

"You're lucky so far that the creeps haven't forced themselves on you." He grumbled in response.

Mikasa just remained silent as she let Eren vent, calmly waiting for the opportunity to speak again. "I know three different types of martial arts and self-defense. And you didn't have to go to defend me either."

"The hell I didn't!" Eren exploded. "You're a woman, Mikasa! It's a man's job to protect a woman!"

The black haired girl just raised her eyebrows at his statement. "Well, I've been fending for myself for a while without a man. No offense, but I can take care of myself."

"Well..." Eren started to say, but stopped to think for a moment. "You don't have to anymore. I've got your back now."

Mikasa turned to look at him. The brunette seemed angry still, but it surprised her. The people she knew wouldn't have said anything or if they did they'd probably say stuff like 'it's your own fault.' and so on. This person...he actually cared. He was difficult to for her to figure out; he did things that a normal guy his age wouldn't consider unless they were getting something out of it. Letting her move in for example...

She found herself staring at his tensed form, while he just sat still, not making a move to start driving. He slowly turned around to look at her, his green eyes still intense but his face had become softer.

"Wh-What?" he asked self-conscious. "Is there something on my face?"

Her face turned red and she tore her eyes away. "N-No. I was just thinking about how sweet you are."

"Me? Sweet?" he gave a sarcastic laugh. "Yeah, right."

Mikasa whirled her face to look at him. "I'm serious."

He felt his own cheeks get hot as her stormy grey eyes seemed to penetrate into his soul. Turning around, he focused his attention on putting the car in drive. This neighborhood was getting creepier by the minute. He couldn't stand it.

"Well...it's nice to hear that you think so..."

* * *

After leaving that part of town, they stopped by the grocery store when they got back to around where Eren lived. It was a small little store, but it was just the one Eren went to. It was close to the house, which made it easy to walk to.

"What do you want to get?" Mikasa asked Eren as she took a buggy from the front, beginning to walk around.

"I honestly don't care. I'll eat anything." He answered distractedly as he looked outside in the parking lot.

"What is it?" Mikasa inquired, trying to see what he was looking at.

"Oh, sorry. I was looking at that car out there." He pointed to the cat. "It's a '67 Camaro."

"That blue one?"

"Yep. That's the one."

"You like cars?"

"Yeah. I work on them just for the hell of it. I'm building a '53 Chevy from scratch at the garage where my friend Thomas works."

"I'd like to see it someday." Mikasa said. While cars never held her attention, she was interested to see Eren's work.

"Really?" He asked, half thrilled, half skeptical. It'd be cool if she really wanted to, but he knew she probably wasn't into that kind of ting.

"Yeah. I think it's kind of cool that you're able to do something like that."

Eren automatically blushed at her compliment. "Well...okay. I was planning to go next weekend. Which makes me wonder...how come you don't have a car?"

"I do." She informed him, causing him to raise his eyebrows. She continued to explain. "It quit on me a couple weeks ago. I had to get it towed and taken to a garage. The owner was nice enough to let it stay there for a couple of months until I could pay him..."

"You're just a magnet for bad luck, huh?" Eren stated out loud. He'd meant it as a joke, but her expression became very sad.

"Yeah..." she sighed. "I guess I am."

Eren wanted to punch himself. '_Good job, idiot.'_

Conversation dwindled as they began to crack down and focus on buying their food. The time seemed to move quickly for Eren, who hated the time consuming task of buying groceries. But having Mikasa with him, it was a lot more enjoyable. Maybe that's why it didn't seem to take as long.

They finally arrived at check-out line, the young blonde cashier girl scanning each item until they were all in bags. After the total was given, Mikasa dug in her purse for her wallet hurriedly.

"What are you doing?" Eren asked.

"I'm looking for some money." She answered. "So I can help pay for this..."

"Don't worry about it. I can pay."

Mikasa continued to search anyway, not willing to stop until she found the paper cash. She needed to stop sticking it in different pockets.

"Here we go." She said, finding two twenties.

"Dammit, Mikasa." Eren snapped. "I got it so just keep your fucking money."

The black haired girl was somewhat confused and surprised by his sudden irritated tone. All she had tried to do was help him out a little since he'd helped her out. Big time. She waited patiently by the cart as he took his wallet out of his back pocket. He merely pulled out a card and swiped it. The cashier gave him his receipt, with a very friendly smile. Eren rejoined her at the cart, grabbing the handles. He began to push the cart out of the store and out toward the car.

"Here." Eren said, holding the keys out to her. "Can you go pop the trunk?"

"Yeah." She answered, taking the keys and walking ahead. She helped him load the groceries, and then he took the cart back up to the cart return.

The drive home was equally silent, Mikasa's mind deep in thought. He'd meant the words as a joke. But she kept thinking about how true the words that could go wrong in her life had. Maybe she was a bad luck magnet.

Eren on the other hand mentally cursed himself as he drove back to the house.

When they arrived, they carried all the groceries and her bags inside. She abandoned her luggage in preference to helping Eren put the other stuff they had bought up.

"Damn." Eren sighed as he finished putting the last bag into the cabinet. "Well, I don't think we'll have to worry about starving."

Mikasa smiled in response, much to Eren's relief. "Nope. We're ready for anything now!"

"Zombies, bring it on!" He pretended to hold a gun up toward an invisible zombie and shoot it in the head. Mikasa's beautiful laugh filled the air.

Something caught Eren's attention at that moment. It was a small detail, anyone else would've overlooked it. He noticed the shadow of what appeared to be a person moving in the hallway.

"Who's there?!" Eren called, his eyes flickering across the room. He turned to his roommate for a second, taking in her surprised face. He immediately put himself between her and the direction that he had seen the figure. In a low whisper, he explained himself to her. "Mikasa, stay back. There's someone else in the house."

Suddenly, a rather short, black haired man came walking out the hallway into the living room. He stopped a few feet in front of them, looking them up and down. Eren stepped a little closer to Mikasa, in case this intruder was after her.

"Well..." the black haired man finally spoke, looking at both their startled faces. "Long time, no see, Mikasa."

* * *

_**A/N:** How'd you like it?_

_I got the ideas for Eren's car hobby from my dad and brother. They're into cars. Actually...my whole dad's side of the family is into cars. LOL. At least, I won't run out of car ideas._

_And thank you very much to all of you that wished me good luck on school. I really appreciate it. It helped tremendously._

_Well, chow for now!_


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N:** Here's the next chapter! Hope you like! Btw **Dr. Archangel** is my coauthor, he comes up with some awesome stuff. He's the reason that Eren knows Krav Maga in here. You'll have to find out what that is in the chapter. ;)_

_Anyway, enjoy! I hope you all like it._

* * *

The short man just stood there, taking the scene of the two young adults in front of him, waiting for a reaction.

Eren didn't know what was going on. Was this some guy some kind of creep? Was he stalking Mikasa? Eren was a little freaked out that this guy knew that Mikasa was living here; after all, she'd just moved in yesterday.

He turned his head toward Mikasa, to gauge her reaction to this visitor than knew her name. Her face was temporarily hidden by her dark locks of hair, but that changed when she spoke.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she almost hissed.

Eren looked at her wide-eyed from the corner of his eye, surprised at her tone. She sounded...annoyed. But the expression on her face would make anyone back down. Well, anyone except this guy.

"I came to check in on you." Levi replied without any interest. His narrow eyes reluctantly left her to glare at Eren. Just seeing these two glare at each other was terrifying. Suddenly the phrase _'if looks could kill'_ ran through his mind. He heard what sounded like a growl from Mikasa.

"Levi, why don't you get a life?"

"I have one. But I have to make sure you're not doing stupid shit behind my back. Now who's this guy?"

Eren felt his steely grey eyes shift to glare at him.  
"None of your damn business."

"You're my little sister." Levi replied. "I have to keep tabs on you. Make sure you're doing your shit."

"HOLY SHIT, THAT'S YOUR BROTHER?!" Eren exclaimed as his gaze kept swapping from Levi to Mikasa in shock.

"Well." The short black haired man replied after a few moments. "We're technically cousins."

"Adoptive cousins." Mikasa corrected with venom in her voice, emphasis on the word adoptive. "How did you find me anyway?"

Levi held up his phone. "GPS."

"You put a fucking tracking device on my phone?! When?!"

"When I got you that new one after you dropped your last one in that boiling water while making ramen."

Levi gave a smug grin while Mikasa's face turned extraordinarily bright red from anger and humiliation. Eren had originally wanted to laugh, picturing that scenario. But he decided not to for his roommate's sake. Well, more because he didn't want her pissed off at him.

"What made you decide to visit anyway?" Mikasa asks, desperate to change the subject.

"I called to speak to you. But some strange guy answered. Said you were moving in with some guy." Levi shifted his eyes back to Eren. "As your guardian, I have to look out for your chastity."

"OH MY GOD." Mikasa squeaked, face beginning to turn red again. Eren was somewhat amused to see all these emotions. It was a change from her normally calm personality.

"What?" Levi asked innocently. "You two are young and hormonal-"

"SHUT YOUR MIDGET ASS MOUTH!" Mikasa growled, a bright red face

"Anyway, how's school going, Mikasa? Still getting straight A's?"

Eren snuck a glance at her . She must be incredibly smart if she's getting A's.

"I guess." She mumbled, still irritated at the topic before. "I just do my work and study."

"Are you still planning on joining track and basketball?"

"Maybe. Depends on my job. When I finally get another one..." she sighed.

_'She's into sports, too?'_ The brown haired boy thought in intial surprise before thinking about it. _'Well...I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. She's got an athletic body...'_

Mikasa and Levi talked for a long time, mainly about how her school was going and what she was going to do regarding a job. Eren just sat silently as the two chatted, internally laughing when one said something to deliberately piss the other one off. It was when Mikasa had left momentarily that Levi finally spoke to him.

"You seem like a nice kid."

"Th-thank you, sir." The brown haired boy was extremely intimidated by the narrow grey eyes of the man.

"As much as I dislike the situation, I know I can't just drag her with me. Her pride would be hurt. If you're fine with her being here..."

"It's no...problem at all, sir!" Eren immediately stammered out, sweat beads coming from his forehead.

"Let me make myself clear though." Levi said in a low, menacing voice. "If you do anything to hurt Mikasa, whether physically or emotionally, any way at all, I can personally guarantee that I'll beat you so hard, your teeth will fall out when I kick you."

"Y-yes, sir." Eren answered, visibly shaking. "B-but...even without your threat...I would never have even thought about hurting her."

Levi raised an eyebrow at the boy's tone. "Oh? Someone has a crush on her then?"

Eren dodged the question with a red face. "I swear I won't hurt her. From what I've picked up on her through certain things she says...she's been hurt enough."

The intimidating man sat back, relaxing his glare into a blank, emotionless mask. "...You're very observant. You'd be correct in your assumption."

"What...happened to-?" Eren started to ask before Levi cut him off.

"It's her story to tell, not mine. Just remember what I said."

* * *

After Levi talked to Mikasa again and observed the two interacting for a while, he decided that it was about time he left. He gave Eren his number so that way if something were to happen he'd have it on hand. After a few words to Mikasa about keeping her grades up (not that she'd had that problem), Levi left the apartment. He had to admit that he was a little impressed with Eren, but there was no way in hell he was going to let either of them know that.

Meanwhile, Mikasa and Eren were left alone in the apartment. Both of them were sitting on the couch in front of the TV.

"I apologize for him." Mikasa sighed.

"For who? Levi?" Eren asked, confused. What was she apologizing for him for?

"Yes. He's so freaking overprotective. All the time."

"I can respect that." Eren replied. "If I had a family member in your shoes, I'd want to keep up with them, too. Make sure they were okay."

A sudden knock on the door alerted the two that someone was there.  
"That's gotta be Armin." Eren thought out loud, making his way to the door. When he opened it, sure enough, there stood his best friend.

"Hey, Eren." Armin greeted. Eren gestured for him to come in, shutting the door behind him as Armin entered. The blonde looked around his friend's apartment as he walked, quite surprised to see the oriental girl sitting on the couch.

"Oh. Armin, this is Mikasa." Eren intoduced her to the blonde haired boy standing in the doorway. "Mikasa, Armin."

"Hi, Armin." Mikasa said with a shy smile.

"Hello, Mikasa." Armin answered politely, trying not to stare as he tried to remember where he'd seen her before. "I remember you from the coffee shop. You stayed there and studied for a long time."

"Yes. That's me."

"How've you been?"

"Better than I was last time that I saw you." She answered.

"Well, that's good." Armin replied, seeming to fidget. The blonde couldn't help, but wonder why she was here with his best friend. He looked between Eren and Mikasa for a few moments before finally asking his major question.

"Am...am I interrupting something here?"

The two looked at him with confusion, neither understanding what he meant.

"I don't follow, Armin." Eren vocalized finally. "What the fuck do you mean?"

"Aren't...you two...on a date or something?"

Eren's eyes nearly popped out of his head, and his cheeks turned blood red. Mikasa, who had been taking a sip of water, was coughing on the water that she had accidentally breathed in. Her face was also bright red, and after she finally cleared her lungs out, she had the same expression as Eren.  
"What?!" They both seemed to cry in unison.

"W-w-where did you get that idea?!" Eren added.

"Well..." Armin stammered nervously. "I...just...I just assumed since...you two were here alone..."

"Mikasa lives here now, Armin." Eren replied. "We're roommates."

"Oh..." Armin commented. "Why...why is that?"

"I lost my job at the Titans' restaurant." Mikasa explained. "Ms. Hanji said that she had to let a few of us go. I wasn't able to pay my rent but fortunately Eren helped me out."

"Oh, I'm sorry about your job. That's an interesting restaurant name, though."

"Yeah." Mikasa agreed, giving a shrug. "Ms. Hanji is really big on Greek mythology. She told me she wants to name her son 'Zeus'."

"That's...odd."

"Yes, it is." The black haired girl sighed. "I know she'll hire me back as soon as possible...but who knows how long that will take..."

"Hey, Mikasa. I have an idea." Armin said, sounding suddenly enthusiastic. "How about you work at the café with us?"

Mikasa's face lit up instantly. "Really?"

"Yeah. We...don't really have anything other than cashier...coffee maker...stuff like that. But..."

"Do you need a baker?" She asked. "I've been baking since I was a kid. I could make all minds of stuff."

Armin smiled at her enthusiasm. "I can ask Erwin, though I'm already sure he'll think that it's a great idea."

"I know!" Mikasa said. "While you're gone, I'll whip something up so you can decide for yourselves!"

"Good idea!"

Eren smiled at his roommate's excited expression. He was glad that she seemed elated at this job opportunity, and thankful to Armin for proposing the idea. He wondered why he hadn't thought of it himself.

"I'll go home and tell him now then. We'll give you a couple of hours before coming back. Is that okay?"

"That's great!" It was actually more than enough time, but she would take it. Anything for this opportunity. Armin left their residence, keys in hand, to go tell his dad about Mikasa.

"I'll get started right now." Mikasa said to herself after Armin had left. She began to look and see what ingredients she had at her disposal. She decided to make cupcakes, probably because she was extremely familiar with the recipe. They were the first thing that she'd ever learned to make.

"Want me to help?" Eren offered as he watched her quickly preparing her ingredients.

"No thanks." She smiled. "I can handle this myself."

Eren continued to observe her as she combined the ingredients in a bowl. She took a spoon and began to mix them together. He couldn't help but smile as he watched her. She turned around, holding the bowl in her arms as she walked over to the recipe book. Not that she needed it; she just wanted to make sure regarding the temperature. Her head slowly looked up to find Eren's eyes on her.

"What is it?" She asked. Self-consciousness flooded to the surface.

"Nothing." He answered calmly, not averting his eyes like he normally did. "I was just...watching you reminds me of my mom."

Mikasa heard the sadness in his voice immediately. She slowed her stirring as she became lost in thought. Now that she thought about it, she really didn't know much about him. At all. Yet here they were, living together.

She turned away from him, emotions coming to the surface. She thought of her own parents, her heart throbbing with pain. What she wouldn't give to see them now.

Eren didn't have to see her face to know that she was remembering something sad. Her shoulders were somewhat slumped, her head was hung a little lower than before...he was good at reading people.

"Sorry." He murmured. "I didn't mean to remind you of something unpleasant."

"It's fine." She replied, forcing the sadness off her face. "Everything happens for a reason...and I guess if it hadn't happened, you and I would never have met."

Eren gave her a warm, tender smile at the thoughts. "What're you saying? That this was destiny?"

"Who knows? I'm not really the type that believes in destiny, but...everything that happens creates a new path. And sometimes, as much as we hate it, we can't control it."

She set the bowl down and walked away from him to grab a small little muffin pan from the cabinet. Slowly, she poured the batter into it.

"What are you making anyway?"

"I figured I'd make cupcakes. Maybe I'm just eager to flaunt my abilities." She gave a small, half-hearted laugh as the last of the batter was emptied into the pan. After sliding the pan into the oven, she got out another bowl and prepared to make the icing. "What happened to your mom, Eren?"

"Huh?" Eren asked, caught off guard.

"Sorry. I don't mean to snoop.."

"No...no...It's fine." Eren replied. "It just...surprised me...that you seemed to know...something happened."

Mikasa could see the emotions building up inside of him just by watching his eyes. He seemed so...vulnerable. She shouldn't have asked. Clearly, it was a sensitive topic for him.

"My mom got very sick and died in the hospital when I was ten. I think it's cruel irony that my dad was a doctor yet he was unable to save her."

"Oh." Mikasa replied, feeling sad at hearing this. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Just like you said, there are just some things out of our control." He let out a deep sigh before continuing. "My dad does blame himself. That's probably why he's become so absorbed in his work. I haven't seen him about six months. But I can't complain too much. He got me this place and told me to use the card he gave me on whatever I need something. He didn't totally ditch me."

Mikasa could tell though, that he wished his dad was around more. Yeah, the father supported his son financially, but what really mattered was the moral support.

"Who raised you then?" She continued to ask. "After...you know..."

"I was old enough to where I was left to live in the house, but my dad had our neighbor Mr. Hannes look after me. He's an okay guy for an ex-Marine drunkard." Eren cracked a smile. Hannes was apparently an important person to him. "Well, do you mind if I ask about you now?"

"What do...you want to know...?" Mikasa asked hesitant.

"Where are your parents?"

"My parents...are...are dead..."

"I'm sorry." Eren said with true sorrow. "Was it some sort of accident?"  
"I wouldn't...label it as that."

He watched her fidget for a few minutes, clearing out of her comfort zone. Something terrible must have happened. Eren started to regret asking.  
"If it's too hard for you to-"

"No...I want to tell you." Mikasa insisted. "I think it'd be good, not just for you...but for me." Eren watched closely as Mikasa inhaled deeply in order to prepare herself to tell him. It was only fair; he'd told her his story, now it was her turn.

"My family and I were at home when human traffickers invaded, killing my dad. When my mom put up a fight, they ended up killing her, too. I was nine."

Eren was completely speechless at her story. What a violent past. She witnessed all of this when she was just nine years old. He wanted to ask more questions, especially regarding how she escaped. However, he wasn't going to upset her any more on the topic. It was more than likely, the darkest chapter of her life.

She took a deep breath as she tried to suppress the mental images of that day. She had to stop mixing for a moment as she tried not to cry. Her heart felt as thought someone had stabbed her.

"Mikasa, wait here." Eren said gently. She was a little bit surprised at his sudden request, but she obeyed. A few moments later, he returned with red fabric in his arms. He slowly began to wrap it around her, finally revealing that it was a scarf.

His beautiful green eyes gazed into hers tenderly as he adjusted the red fabric around her neck. "This scarf was given to me by my mother. Before she died, she told me, that as long as you keep this scarf, then I'll never leave your side." He paused for a moment, hesitant to continue, but he did. "If you keep this scarf for me, then I'll never leave you either."

Pink tinted her pale cheeks. Eren thought she looked so cute. He gave her a warm smile. A couple of tears started to pour from her eyes, scaring Eren.  
"Mikasa?! What's wrong?! Did I do something?!"

She didn't answer with words. Instead her arms coiled around him in a tight embrace. Eren was stunned, but wrapped her arms around her.

"Th-thank you, Eren..." she sobbed. "For...everything you've done..."

"No problem, Mikasa." Eren calmly said, stroking her black locks as he held her. After a few moments, she quieted down, wiping the wetness off her cheeks.  
"I...I guess..." she sniffed. "I'd better get...back to work..."

Eren reluctantly let go of the shaking girl, watching her with concern as she continued to finish her work.

A couple hours later, a knock on the door informed Mikasa and Eren that their guests had arrived. Eren got up from his seat and opened the door, revealing Armin and the man that Mikasa recognized as Erwin Smith.

"Hello, sir."

"Hello, Eren." The blonde haired man with icy blue eyes greeted back. "How have you been?"

"Oh, fine. Same sh-stuff, sir."

"That's good to hear." The icy blue eyes turned to Mikasa. "So you're the girl Armin told me about?"

"Yes, sir." The black haired girl answered.  
"My name is Erwin Smith." The tall blonde man introduced himself. "I own the café where these two young men work."

"My name is Mikasa Ackerman, sir." The oriental girl introduced herself.

"Armin told me that you're interested in working at the café as a baker."

"Yes sir, I am. I made something for you to taste. So that you can judge my worth for yourself."

"You are apparently a hard worker, Ms. Ackerman."

"Thank you, sir."

Mikasa walked into the kitchen to retrieve the cupcakes that she'd spent the afternoon making. Silently, she was internally praying that they would land her the job.

Everyone seemed on edge except Erwin as he took one of the small cakes from the plate. He took a bite, and remained silent as he tested it. After a few moments of suspense, he finally gave his answer.

"These are very delicious." Erwin praised as he finished his cupcake. He turned his attention to the young oriental girl. "Nice to have you as an employee, Ms. Ackerman."

* * *

"Are you sure this is how you want to celebrate?" Eren asked as they walked down the streets toward Mike's Garage. After becoming an official employee and saying goodbye to Armin and Erwin, Mikasa suggested that they celebrate by going to see Eren's 'baby'. Though she'll never understand that ridiculous term he used to describe it.

"Of course." Mikasa replied, seemingly cheerful. Still, he was hoping that she wasn't forcing herself to do this.

"Are you sure? I mean, we could do something else if you want."

"Nope!"

Eren smiled as he watched her walk a little ahead of him.

"Hey, punk!"

That voice. He'd heard that voice before. He groaned as he finally recognized the owner.

Reggie came into view, a baseball bat in hand. He still smelled terrible, worse from last time. And that same creepy grin...

"You're going to pay for yesterday, you punk."

Eren looked at him with an uninterested expression before turning around and walking away. "I've got better things to do than waste my time on you."

Reggie suddenly grabbed Eren's shoulder and whirled him around, immediately throwing a punch to his face. Eren staggered under the force, but didn't fall down. Mikasa immediately went to jump into action and beat the shit out of Reggie, but Eren grabbed her arm and held her back.

"I told you...this isn't your job, Mikasa."

Eren gently pushed her behind him as Reggie approached him with the bat, holding it as if to strike. The brown haired boy gave a taunting smile at the male in front of him.

"What's the matter, Reggie?" He antagonized. "I know you can do better than that."

Having his pride hurt, Reggie closed the distance, swinging the bat toward quickly to his taunter. Eren was quicker though. His Krav maga training kicked in. He wrapped an arm around his attacker's wrist as he began to swing the metal bat. Having trapped his arms, Eren used his other hand to hit Reggie with his palm. After hitting the creep again with his elbow, he took the bat from Reggie's grasp, throwing it into a nearby dumpster.

Reggie turned to glare at Eren, a pissed look on his face until he saw Eren's expression. Even Mikasa seemed to shudder at the murderous glare on the boy who always seemed to be so sweet.

Reggie rose to his feet, slowly backing away from the intimidating green eyed boy. It was long before he had tucked tale and left.

"Eren..." Mikasa called, seeing Eren trembling in what she thought was fear, but soon realized that it was raw anger.

"Eren?" Mikasa asked, sounding a little worried. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

She gave a small breath of relief. He was okay, except..."You have a bruise on your cheek."

"Huh? Oh..." Eren realized, looking into the glass window to see a dark bruise had already formed.

"Come on. Let's get some ice on that."

"Mikasa, I'm okay, really."

"Just come on."

He followed her as she dragged him with her to a convenience store just across the street from where they were at. After buying a cup of ice, she poured the ice into a bag and walked to Eren. He flinched when the frigid bag met his hot cheek. But he noticed that she was shaking, very little but still.

"Are you okay, Mikasa?" Eren asked, taking her wrist in his grasp as she was holding the ice to his cheek. He took the ice with his other hand so that she didn't have to hold it.

"Yes. I'm fine." Mikasa answered, wondering why he'd be concerned for her. She wasn't the one who got punched in the face.

He had an idea of what was bothering her. "Hey."

Reluctantly, she looked up into his intense gaze.

"I'm not going anywhere. I promise. Understand?"

Her eyes widened, his words hitting home. In truth, this was what she was afraid of. She hated forming attachments. Relationships were made to break her when something went wrong. But with Eren...it was different. He made her feel secure, like he was her rock. It seemed so silly since they hardly knew each other. But that's how it felt.

She gave him a small smile, accompanied by a nod.

"Good. Well, come on, lets get going before it gets too dark." Eren quietly suggested, standing up and taking her hand in his. Without another word, he quietly led her to their destination.

* * *

_**A/N:** Did you enjoy it? I hope so. It does kind of jump around I suppose. But I still hope that it was okay._

_Eren kicked ass with his Krav Maga, right?_

_Sorry I haven't been able to update as much. My school work is very time consuming and I usually end up falling asleep while working on my fanfics! _  
_Anyway, I hope it was worth the wait. Until next time!_


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N:** Hello, everyone! Get ready to enjoy another Roommates update. Thanks to** Dr. Archangel**, who gave me ideas when my brain hit a brick wall when writing._

_Also for any of you who followed my EreMika Wings of Smut series, I wanted to let you know that they were removed from Fanfic due to their explicit content. So I've decided to post them on Tumblr._

_However, I didn't keep most of the drafts. The only ones I have are the beach au, the 3dmg, and the roleplay smuts. I'll let you know when they're up and post a link on my profile page._

_I hope this doesn't seem too choppy!_

_Anyway, enjoy the chapter! :)_

* * *

Monday brought a new change to Mikasa's life. After her regular afternoon classes and making dinner for Eren and herself, Mikasa went to the coffee shop for her first day of work. She was given the same shift as Eren, which made her considerably happy since she'd have some familiar company.

They worked until closing time at one in the morning. Eren let out a yawn as he locked the front door. Mikasa seemed in a very bright mood, despite her long and exhausting day. The two soon left to walk back to the apartment.

"So..." Eren began as they walked. "How do you like your new job, Mikasa?"

"I really love it." Mikasa answered, smiling. "To be honest, it's better than my old job. I am sad that I don't see Ms. Hanji anymore, but other than that, this is great."

Eren gave a warm smile at her enthusiasm; she was beginning to appear more optimistic. A lot much more so than when they first met. "That's great that you like it."

"Hopefully, I'll be able to save up quickly so I can hurry up and get my own place..." she told him, making his heart sink.

"Well..." he added, trying not to let his disappointment show. "Just...take your time, Mikasa. I'm not going to throw you out."

Mikasa looked at him, realizing what her words must've sounded like. "I don't think that...I just hate imposing on you!"

The words cheered him some. "Don't worry. You're not imposing on me...are you cold or something?"

"Huh?"

"You're...wearing the scarf..."

"Oh..." Her cheeks turned pink. "I just...I like wearing it...it's very warm and soft."

Eren smiled in response; it made him happy that she seemed to like it so much.

They made small talk on their way home through the dark streets, nothing but street lights showing the way.

"Well..." she said with a yawn as soon as they got home. "I better get to bed."

"Okay. Good night." Eren called as he watched her make her way to her bed room.

Eren made his way to his own room shortly after, collapsing on the bed and immediately drifting off.

Erwin called them the next morning before they had class and told them to stay home instead of going to their usual shift. Apparently there was a water main break, effecting the small coffee shop. After that brief phone call, Armin came by to pick the two of them up for class.

Eren now sat in his English 102 class, bored out of his mind. He'd much rather be working on his car. Or just hanging out with Mikasa. He still remembered the amazed look on her face when he showed her his 'baby'.

_"You built this?!'_ She had asked. _'Incredible!'_

He had been leaning against it, anticipating her reaction. When she had said those words, he felt like a proud little kid again. Even now as he remembered this, a blush came to his face, accompanied by a gleeful smile.

"MR. JAEGER!"

Eren snapped out of his daydream to find his instructor standing over him, an impatient expression on his face. The young boy snapped to attention.

"Y-yes sir?!"

"If you're finished daydreaming, answer the question!"

Eren blushed ten shades of red as he answered incorrectly.

Meanwhile, Mikasa was busy listening to her calculus instructor as he gave a lesson on limits. Math came naturally to her, though she honestly didn't enjoy it at all. So it wasn't a surprise that she was greatful when they were finally dismissed.

As she copied down the assignment for the night, she heard footsteps approach. She looked out of the corner of her eye and sighed.

_'Uh-oh.'_ Mikasa thought with dread. _'It's Jean.'_

She didn't look at him until he was at her desk. "Hey, Mikasa."

"Hi, Jean." She replied awkwardly as she started to put her papers away, trying to ignore him.

"Nice weather, huh?"

"I guess."

"So...how would you like to-?"

"No." The black haired girl cut him off, quickly picking up her books and trying to leave. "Now if you'll excuse me..."

"Please...Mikasa." he pleaded. "I want to be with you."

"You really should've thought of that before you acted like an ass, Jean." She went to walk around him when he suddenly grabbed her arm, her books knocked to the floor.

"Listen to me!" Jean ordered angrily.

Mikasa refused to be intimidated by him though. "Let go of me. Now."

"Are you bothering this girl?"

Mikasa looked up to the sound of the familiar voice to find that Eren was coming toward them. He was glaring at Jean with intense anger.

"This...this isn't any of your business." Jean snapped as he let go of Mikasa's arm. She stepped away from him as Jean and Eren didn't take their eyes off each other, anger overflowing from both their eyes.

"Well..." Eren slowly stated. "When you start harrassing my roommate...that kinda makes it my business."

"ROOMMATE?!" Jean looked as if he was going to have a stroke. The shocked boy turned to Mikasa, hoping for her to deny it.

"Yes, Jean. He's my roommate." Mikasa confirmed.

Jean's hand clenched into a fist almost instantly. He lunged forward, Eren his intended target. The green-eyed boy merely dodged out of the way easy, letting Jean fall on a nearby desk.

Eren's fists were clenched hard into fists, too. Though he was resisting the urge to just beat this guy. He had no idea why this guy was pissing him off so bad, but he knew that he needed this fucker away from here. NOW.

Mikasa seemed to read Eren's thoughts. "Jean, I should warn you that Eren knows Krav Maga. So I don't think it's wise to pick a fight with him."

Jean gave a quick glance at Mikasa before picking his bag up and stalking away.

"What in the hell was that about?" Eren asked.

"Sorry about him." Mikasa muttered, turning around to gather her books to discover Eren had already done so. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I just..." the brown haired boy stuttered. "You...told me where your last class was so...I thought I could walk you back to the apartment...ya know." His face was crimson the entire time.

"Thank you." Mikasa replied with a smile. "That's really sweet of you."

The brunette blushed darker at her compliment. "N-no problem..."

The two were silent for only a couple of seconds before Eren's curiosity was vocalized.

"Who was he?" Eren asked, changing the subject. "And he better not have been harrassing you."

Mikasa bit her lip in hesitation. She really didn't want to discuss her ex. At all. After a few minutes, Eren prodded her on the question again.

"C'mon, Mikasa." Eren told her. "I need to know in case this fucker shows up at my place."

"He's...he's my ex-boyfriend." Mikasa answered in frustration.

Eren's eyes widened. "You're...ex? Wow..."

Mikasa took her books from Eren's arms and proceeded to walk out of the room. Eren followed not too far behind her.

"He's...got quite a temper." He calmly said. "You okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. And that temper is why I broke up with him." Mikasa replied quickly, effectively ending that conversation.

Eren wanted to ask more, but he got the feeling that he shouldn't. For some reason, she was extremely reluctant. Maybe there was something personal that had happened between them.

No matter what it was though, Eren resolved to protect her so long as she wanted Jean to stay away from her.

* * *

Since neither of them had to work that evening, Mikasa decided to make spaghetti and a salad for dinner. While she was at work in the kitchen, Eren was bugging her about helping which she politely refused multiple times. Suddenly, the phone rang, starling them both. Eren quickly recovered and walked over to answer it.

"Hello?" Eren answered.

The person at the other end talked for a couple of seconds, before Eren spoke again. "Yes, this is Eren Jaeger."

Mikasa stopped what she was doing when Eren didn't speak for a couple of minutes. She had this weird way of knowing when something was wrong, and boy did she sense it now.

"What?!...Okay...shit. Well, alright...Keep me updated..."

She heard him say "Goodbye." and slam the phone down.

"SON OF A BITCH!"

Mikasa immediately ran into the living room. "What's wrong?"

"SOME FUCKER STOLE MY DAMN CAR!"

Mikasa's face just looked at him in shock as he spun around and started flinging profanities out of his mouth. She couldn't believe someone would go through the trouble of stealing the car that Eren had worked so hard on building. It must have taken hima long time to save up and buy the parts as well as a lot of time putting the pieces together.

"I'm so sorry, Eren." Mikasa tried comforting, though her voice was drowned out by his angry yelling.

"I'm going to kill the son of a bitch that stole it! I'll track them down and beat the shit outta them!"

Mikasa tried take his hand in hers. "Eren, just calm do-"

"DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN!" Eren yelled back as his hand clenched in a fist, swinging to strike his harrasser.

Before he made contact however his eyes fell upon the red fabric draped across her neck.

Memories of his mother flooded to his mind. Of all the times he'd screamed at her in anger, she'd always stayed by him. She forgave him every time, even before he'd come apologize.

The sadness he felt at that moment cleared his mind. Tears came to his eyes at the realization that he was about to hurt Mikasa, of all people. He immediately snapped his arm down to his side and backed away from her. She looked back at him, a reserved expression on her face. But...he didn't see any surprise there.

She made a couple of steps toward him, and Eren tried to back away. After what he'd come close to doing, he was hoping she'd let him have hell. Instead, the oriental girl reached out hesitantly and grabbed his hand. He didn't dare make eye contact, too ashamed.

"Eren..." she quietly said before gently wrapping her arms around his shoulders. One hand stroked his hair while the other pat his back in a soothing manner. All the tension in his body mysteriously vanished as he put his own arms around her and buried his face in her hair.

"I'm...s-sorry...Mi-Mikasa..." Eren apologized through his sobs. He felt so humiliated and angry at himself; first for almost hurting her and second for crying like a baby right now when he didn't deserve to. But he was slowly calming down somehow. Mikasa was just hugging him, but it gave him a sense of security and comfort. He didn't try to get away either, he just let her hold him. His crying started to die down, and soon he was just sitting there with her, hugging her back.

Mikasa continued to simply pat his back, hoping to comfort him at least a little. She could tell that his car had meant a lot to him; it was probably the only thing he valued since his father was never around anymore. She couldn't help but wonder how much pain was in him. After all, her parents were murdered, but Eren was dealing with the fact that his father was alive and voluntarily stayed away. She couldn't imagine what that must feel like.

The boy in her arms had stopped crying by this point but made no move to leave her. She didn't loosen her grip on him at all. Because she wanted to help him hold himself together. The longer she held him, the more she thought about what a great guy he really was. What really brought her opinion to light was what had almost happened. The fact that Eren had not even touched her, yet he seemed like he was going to break in two.

Jean had never shown such regret for his actions.

"I...I'm sorr-" Eren started to say again, before Mikasa placed a hand over his mouth.

"Don't apologize..." she told him as she removed her hand. "It's okay..."

"No...it's not." He sighed in frustration. "I...I was...I almost hurt you...I can't believe that I..." His hands pulled at his hair in anger. "I'm an awful person..."

"No, you're not." Mikasa interrupted. "You didn't hurt me...you stopped before you-."

"But I almost did. That's what's bad, Mikasa." He rubbed his temples. "Holy shit..."

"Well, you didn't." She replied. "So don't worry about it."

"But-"

"No 'buts', and if you say you're sorry one more time, I'm going to kick your ass so hard that you'll have to clear your throat before you fart."

Eren looked at her stern, frustrated face in shock before the two of them suddenly busted out laughing.

"Where in the...hell did you...even hear that?" Eren asked between laughs.

"My friend had a ringtone that said that a long time ago." She replied, still giggling. "So do you feel any better?"

Their laughter died down as he answered. "A little bit."

"Well...how about you go watch your show?" Mikasa suggested, taking his hand and walking him over to the couch.

"Why don't you watch with me?" He replied.

"Eren, I have to cook dinner."

"You don't have to hover over the stuff, though. Just...please."

"...Fine, you win."

"Sweet success!" He said, to which Mikasa rolled her eyes.

Eren was pleased to see that the movie Remember the Titans was on. It was on his top ten favorite movies list. Mikasa silently sat by him, getting up every now and then to stir the sauce to prevent from it from sticking.

She was in the middle of boiling the pasta when they heard a knock at the door. Eren quickly headed over to the door and opened it. In front of him were two police officers.

"Eren Jaeger?" The one who appeared to be in charge asked for confirmation.

"Yes, sir. Can I help you?"

"We just wanted to let you know that the culprit who stole your car."

"That's good."

"Sir," the other officer interjected. "Unfortunately, your car has been totaled. There are some parts you can salvage, but other than that..."

Mikasa couldn't see Eren's reaction, but after a few short seconds, the brunette replied. "Well, thanks for the help. I'm a bit sad about my car, but I really appreciate you catching the guy."

"We're just doing our job, Mr. Jaeger." The first officer replied with a grin. "But at least, Mike can learn where the weak spots are so he can improve security."

"That's good...thanks again."

"Have a good evening, Mr. Jaeger." The officer said as he and his partner left. Eren shut the door behind them, not hearing Mikasa as she walked over to him. He was startled to see her when he turned around, but regained his composure quickly.

"I'm really sorry, Eren." Mikasa told him. "You put so much time into that car..."

His expression was calm with the hint of a smile on it, surprising her. She was even more startled when he walked to her and suddenly wrapped his arms around her again, only this time it felt different. Last time, it was just for the sake of comfort, but this hug felt like it was on a different level altogether. It made Mikasa blush, and her heart beat fast. But...maybe she was reading too deep into it. However, she returned the gesture.

"It's okay..." he replied calmly. "There's a ton of cars in the world..."

Mikasa pulled away enough to look at his face, finding that he was genuinely not upset anymore.

"I can always make another one..." he told her gently, bringing her close again. "You mean more to me than a fucking car..."

Mikasa could feel herself blush harder at his words. But instead of escaping, she held him tightly back. That is, until a smell filled the room.

"Is something...burning...?"

"Ah! Shit!" Mikasa yelled in panick, letting go of her friend and darting into the kitchen. She hurriedly grabbed the spoon off the counter. To her dismay, the pasta was all stuck together and had started to burn.

"Dammit, this has never happened..." Mikasa groaned. "I'm sorry. I'll boil some more, but dinner will be a little late."

"That's okay. Can I help with anything?" He asked, making his way to the kitchen.

"No, I got it."

"But you never let me help."

"Because I don't need it."

"Damn." Eren commented in fake annoyance. "I can't even cook in my own kitchen..."

Mikasa sighed. "Fine. If you want to help, go get the lettuce and wash it."

"Yes, ma'am." Eren laughed. He walked over to the fridge, opened the door, and pulled the lettuce out. Then he took a strainer and cut the water on. Piece by piece, he broke off the lettuce and washed it before placing it in the strainer.

"Well, you sure seem to know what you're doing." Mikasa commented.

"I've fed myself before, Mikasa." Eren laughed as he stuck his tongue out at her playfully, earning him a slap on his arm with a dish towel.

Before long, their dinner of spaghetti and salad was ready, and Eren and Mikasa sat down to eat.

"Boy, this stuff is great." Eren complimented as he wolfed down his spaghetti.

"You really think so?" Mikasa asked with some color in her cheeks.

"Hell yes!" he said.

"Don't talk with your mouth full!" Mikasa laughed.

After they ate, the two roommates watched a little bit of TV before turning in for the night. Both were happy to have gotten to just sit around the house for the day, despite the misfortune with Eren's car.

But sleep didn't come easy to either of them.

* * *

Eren tossed and turned for the first hour he slept, trying to escape the dream he was trapped in. If you could call it a dream.

It was nothing, just darkness. Not that he was scared of the dark, it was the solitude that scared him. When he'd called out, nobody would ever answer him. It reminded him to much of his mother's death and his father's departure.

But he never dwelt too much on it. After all, he had friends. Armin, Hannes, Mike, Thomas, Erwin...and now Mikasa.

Mikasa was just wonderful to him. He smiled to himself at just the thought of her. She hadn't been with him long, yet he was finding himself more and more attached to her.

However, he knew he needed to get his temper under better control. He internally cringed in recollection of earlier this afternoon. He still couldn't believe that he almost...

Maybe it was because that was his defense mechanism in high school. Whenever someone would insulted or maybe just say something he didn't like, he'd hall off and punch them. Of course, he'd never even swung at a girl before.

_'I'm going to work on my anger issues.'_ Eren resolved in his mind. _'I'm going to become a better person...for her sake, at least.'_

There was a light knock at the door, interrupting his thoughts. He quickly threw on a shirt and got out of bed, making his way to the bed room door.

He opened the door to find Mikasa standing there, dressed in a T-shirt and short pajama shorts. His cheeks turned pink at seeing her, but he quickly composed himself. "H-hey."

"Hey." She answered. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Nah. Come on in."

Mikasa took a couple of steps inside, looking very nervous. Eren couldn't help but wonder if something was bothering her.

"What's up?" He asked her. "Something wrong?"

"No..." She looked away, face darkening. "I...I was...wondering if you'd like some company tonight..."

Eren tried not to let his surprise show. She must be having a rough night as well.

"S-sure..."

He slipped under the covers with her following shortly after him. It was a little strange, since neither of them had ever shared a bed with the opposite sex before. Mikasa was somewhat uncomfortable but at the same time, his presence was soothing to her. Maybe it was just because she wasn't alone for once.

Eren was also slightly uneasy at sharing a bed with Mikasa and wondered why that was. Was it just because of the fact she was a girl? He highly doubted it. But he decided not to think too much on it.

"Hey, Mikasa?" Eren asked, rolling over to face her. She didn't answer, sleep having already claimed her for the night. Eren just smiled at the sight of her peaceful, sleeping face. He reached down to pull the sheets further up on her, in case she was cold. He rested his head back on his pillow, facing her, thinking about how lucky he was to have met such a wonderful person.

The rest of the night was the most peaceful night either of them had had in a long time.

* * *

_**A/N:**_ _How'd you like it? I'm sorry if it's corny sounding. But I hope it's not. And sorry, it's been taking so long to update. I have a bad habit of writing drabbles that I plan for future chapters. Then I can't use them for a long time...Anyway, thank **Dr. Archangel** again for staying on my ass about this chapter as well as all the wonderful ideas he gave for it. :)_

_Until next time!_


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N: **Hello, everyone. Welcome to another update of **Roommates**! I hope you enjoy this chapter a lot, as well as the story so far in general. Of course, I do need to update **Gone** soon, too._

_As for last chapter and Jean...yeah, I know that wasn't well written. Especially with what he said. But to be honest, Jean isn't really high on the characters I like list...so I don't look to deep into the character._

_And I'm amused you guys all think it was Jean that fucked Eren's car up. ;)_

_Anyway, here's the new chapter! Enjoy! I have a feeling it's not that good though..._

* * *

Morning seemed to come a little too early for both Eren and Mikasa the next day. While neither of them had to be at class for some time, both slept late compared to when they usually woke up.

Mikasa's eyes slowly opened to look around her, seeing slivers of sunlight shine through the cracks of the blinds. Despite becoming aware of the fact that she needed to get up, Mikasa didn't budge. She felt so warm right now, warmer than she'd felt in years.

She couldn't go back to sleep, so she just laid in the bed next to Eren. A blush formed on her face when she realized that she had her arms around Eren...and that his arms were around her. She didn't make a move to pull away though. After a few minutes of deep thought, she saw his eyes begin to open.

"Good morning..." she said quietly.

"Good morning." He replied drowsily. His eyes got wide and his face bright red when he noticed his arms were hugging her to him.

"Ah. S-sorry..." Eren apologized as he began to withdraw his arms from her, embarrassed. He was a little surprised that Mikasa didn't loosen her grip on him.

A small yawn escaped her before she whispered, "Don't leave just yet...please?"

"Alright..." the brunette replied nervously. A small smile formed on his face, unseen by the girl next to him. He couldn't help but think she was cute. Not that he had the guts to say that to her.

He felt her shuffle next to him, and her arms slowly unwind from around him. She sat up and stretched, a yawn escapung her again.

Eren sat up as well. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah...how about you?"

"Yep." He answered. "Like a baby."

Mikasa got out of the bed, stretching some more. "I'll be right back. I'm going to go get dressed."

"Okay." He replied as she walked out of the room, the sound of her footsteps slowly fading into the hallway.

Eren threw the covers off and got out of bed, deciding that he needed to get dressed himself. He grabbed a pair of jeans off his dresser and quickly changed out of the gym shorts he'd slept in. He tossed them in the dirty clothes basket and took off his shirt to do the same.

"Eren, what do you want for..." Mikasa started to ask before falling silent at the sight in front of her.

Eren had his back to her as he opened his dresser and pulled out a shirt to wear. He had already rid himself of the T-shirt that he'd slept in, exposing the muscles on his back. She hadn't expected him to be so toned underneath his shirt. Red creeped onto her face, and her mind went blank as she found herself staring until he turned toward her. She immediately tore her eyes away from him.

"Huh? Oh, let me make breakfast this morning." He told her as he put on his clean shirt. His green eyes turned to look at her, a little puzzled that she wasn't looking at him. "Hey, what's wrong? Why are you so red?"

"Hahaha...I guess I just got a little hot..." Mikasa quickly replied, realizing her words weren't too far off from the truth.

"Okay..." he said, uncertain. He walked toward the door, grabbing her sleeve as he passed her. She followed behind him quietly, still trying to recover.

"You like omelets?"

"Huh?" She asked, being snapped out of her daze. "Oh, yeah. I do."

"Good." Eren replied, releasing her when they entered the kitchen. "Because I'm gonna make the best omelet ever."

Mikasa laughed. "Do you want any help?"

"Hell no...I'm going to impress you with my amazing cooking skills this morning."

"Okay then." She laughed again, leaning against the counter. Eren got to work immediately, turning the stove top on and prepping his ingredients. As he cooked their breakfast, Mikasa checked to see what they might need at the store soon.

"Hey!" Eren called when he was finished cooking. "Come and get it!"

Mikasa walked into the kitchen to find that Eren had already put their food on plates and was setting it on the table. She went over to the fridge to get some orange juice and cups for them before sitting down.

"Here you go." Eren said. "The best ham and cheese omelet you'll ever eat."

"You're pretty confident..." she commented.

"Taste it and tell me I'm wrong."

Mikasa picked up her fork and used it to cut a piece of the ham and cheese omelet. She scooped into her mouth, Eren waiting for her reaction.

"Well?" He prompted.

"Mmm...not bad." Mikasa complimented.

"Not bad? That's all?" His voice sounded somewhat disappointed, and Mikasa thought it was kind of cute.

"I'm just messing with you." She reassured him. "It's delicious. You win."

Eren grinned with triumph. "I'm glad you like. Nice to know I can still cook."

"Alright, alright. Hurry and eat yourself so we can get going."

After they finished eating, Eren and Mikasa made their way to work. As soon as they arrived, Eren made his way to the back to get his work apron. Armin was just getting off his shift. He walked over to Mikasa immediately as Eren walked away.

"Hey, Mikasa..." Armin whispered after Eren was out of earshot.

"What is it?"

"I didn't know if you knew this...but Eren's birthday is in a couple of weeks."

"Really?" Mikasa said. "I had no idea."

"Yeah...he doesn't usually talk about it. Can you bake a birthday cake while I take him to get his traditional birthday pizza?"

"Of course." Mikasa agreed. Eren had been so kind to her, she thought it was the least she could do for him.

Armin smiled in response. "Great. I'll take him to do something else if you need more time. But he likes this one place where they make these huge pizzas to order. It takes a while, then the drive is long, but he really likes them. Hopefully, it'll be enough to at least bake a cake."

"Yeah. I can do-"

"What're you two whispering about?" Eren yelled when he came out from the back, ready for work.

"Nothing!" Armin immediately replied. "Anyway, I gotta go!"

Eren raised his eyebrows at Armin's abrupt farewell. "What's going on?"

"Nothing." Mikasa said, internally giggling. "Now lets get to work."

* * *

**Couple Weeks Later...**

"Are you sure?" Eren asked Mikasa for the sixth time. Armin waited at the front door of the café, ready to get Eren out of there so that Mikasa could make the surprise cake for Eren's birthday. But at this rate, she won't get the chance to make it.

"Go on with Armin." Mikasa urged, wanting to hurry up and start. "It's your birthday. Take some time off."

"But-" The brunette started before he was interrupted by her yet again.

"Eren Jaeger, you'd better go with Armin right this minute before I throw and handcuff you into his car." She threatened jokingly.

Eren gave a laugh at her threat. "Okay, okay, okay. No need to get so aggressive, Mikasa."

The oriental girl gently shoved Eren toward the door. "Now get going!"

"I'm hurt." Eren said in fake sadness. "You don't seem to want me around. And it's my birthday."

The raven haired girl rolled her eyes. "Go get your pizza, Eren. Armin's told me about much you love it."

"Eren, come on." Armin called. "We've got to get there before Marco closes the place."

Eren went with Armin, waving to Mikasa as he said, "You know good and damn well that Marco won't close today until we get our stuff."

Mikasa laughed at the exchange as the door slowly shut behind them. As soon as they drove off, Mikasa got immediately to work on making Eren's birthday cake. She decided to make a chocolate one, mainly because Eren seemed to love chocolate.

It had only been around five minutes since Armin and Eren had left when Mikasa heard the door of the café open. A middle aged man with shoulder length brown hair and glasses came walking in.

"Hello. Can I help you?" Mikasa said to the man. He looked a little confused at the sight of her behind the counter.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." the older man replied, immediately starting to turn around. "I must have got the shift wrong..."

His words confused her at first. She knew that she'd never seen this man before, yet she recognized him from somewhere. Suddenly, it hit her like a big yellow school bus.

"Wait!" Mikasa cried after him. He turned to face her, surprise on his face. The young girl blushed at her outburst, but continued speaking. "You're looking for Eren, aren't you?"

The man seemed caught off guard. "Y-yes. I thought that this was the shift he worked."

"Oh, it is. But I took over for him tonight."

"Is he at home? I knocked, but no one answered."

"No, sir. He went out to get a pizza with Armin." Mikasa answered. "He'll be back in a bit though."

"I see...I'm Eren's father." The older man explained to her.

"My name is Mikasa." The oriental girl introduced herself."Nice to meet you, Mr. Jaeger."

The older man was silent for a few moments before he asked. "May I...sit here until he comes back?"

"No problem." She told him, not wanting to say anything that would make him feel the need to leave. Eren had said that it had been months since he'd seen his father; this was sure to be a birthday surprise.

While Mikasa was making the batter for Eren's birthday cake, Grisha Jaeger sat quietly at the counter. She offered to make him something a few times, but he politely declined. Once she had everything prepped, she stuck the cake batter into the oven to bake.

"You're new here, aren't you?" He asked.

Mikasa turned to look at him, somewhat surprised that he was speaking to her now. "Oh...is it that obvious?"

"No, it's just last time it was just Erwin and Armin that worked here. Aside from Eren."

"Oh. I haven't been on the job too long...Just a couple of weeks."

Grisha nodded his head in thought. "I see..."

The silence that followed this time was interrupted by the jingle of the door, alerting them that someone had entered the building.

"Hey, Mikasa! We're back!" She suddenly heard Eren call from the front door. Mikasa turned around to see Eren enter, a grin on his face until his eyes found the person she was talking to. His eyes grew wide with surprise while his smile vanished, replaced with a dumbstruck expression.

Grisha looked over to meet eyes with his son for the first time in months. He cleared his throat nervously before speaking.

"Hello, son." Grisha Jaeger said.

"D-Dad..." Eren stuttered in surprise. "H-hey..."

"You...look well."

"So...do you."

Both Mikasa and Armin could feel all the tension in the room from the two men's awkwardness. Silence took over the entire café.

"Uhhh...hey." Armin said, deciding to break the silence. "We'd better eat before the pizza gets too cold."

Mikasa looked at Eren and his father, as they both seemed to relax a little bit.

"Yeah." Eren replied monotonously. "We'd better eat it while it's hot."

Grisha Jaeger nodded in response.

After Eren and his father had gotten their slices, Armin walked over to Mikasa.

"Lets take ours to the back." He whispered. "Give them some time to talk alone."

Mikasa nodded. "I couldn't agree more."

Armin and Mikasa took their food and headed for the back kitchen.

"Where are you guys going?" Eren called to them from the table.

"Oh, we're just going to...check inventory!" Armin lied smoothly. "We won't be too long."

"Oh...okay."

Mikasa quickly walked through the door to their kitchen, Armin following shortly after, leaving the father and son at the table alone.

Armin turned around to lock the door, before speaking to the black haired girl. "Sorry, but it's been months since he's seen his dad. Things have been awkward between them for years."

Mikasa nodded. "I know. Eren told me about...his mother and all."

"Then you understand why."

"Yeah." Mikasa said. She walked over to the oven and put on an oven mitten. "Anyway, you can help me finish decorating the cake while they talk."

"Lets get to it then." Armin agreed with a grin.

"Did you bring candles?"

"I sure did..."

Eren felt awkward as he ate his food in silence, not quite knowing what to say to his father. It had been six or more months since the last they had seen each other, and years since they actually talked like father and son. So they ate in silence for a little while.

"Oh. I...got you a little something." Grisha said, digging in his coat pocket until he pulled out a small box. He set it on the table in front of his son.

"Uhhh...thanks." Eren replied, reaching for the box. When he opened it, he found a silver wrist watch sitting inside.

"Wow. Thanks, Dad." Eren said again, a little more enthusiased. "I've been needing a new watch."

"I hope that one will do for you."

"It will."

Silence filled the room again, neither of them knowing what to ask or say to the other.

"So...uhhh...how's work been?" The young man finally asked his dad. "You been busy?"

"Yes...I've been working with a research team on developing a cure...for breast cancer."

The words didn't surprise Eren, but memories flooded back to his mind. "Mom...would be proud of you, Dad..."

Grisha's sad face gave a nod at his son. "She would be more proud of you. Look at how much you've grown."

Eren gave a sad smile. "I guess. There are times that I don't act so mature."

"Eren, there's something else that I wanted to tell you." Grisha suddenly said. "I've been invited to an award ceremony at the hospital I've been working at. And I'd like you to come."

Grisha held out an envelope with Eren's name on it. The young man took the invitation and looked over at his father in surprise. "Umm...yeah. Sure, Dad. I'll be there..."

"I'm glad to hear that...I know that I've not been much of a father to you since...your mother died."

The young man felt uncomfortable by his father's words. "Dad...it's okay. I'm sure that it was hard for you after...well, you know."

"That doesn't excuse what I've did to you, Eren."

The young man didn't respond at first, trying to keep his emotions in check. He didn't want to end up crying, not now. Sometimes, he just felt so...vulnerable.

"Dad...You don't have to worry about me." He finally spoke in a calm voice. "I'm...doing good. In fact, I feel better than I have in a while."

"That's...good to hear, son..." Grisha commented, a small grin on his face.

Conversation between them died down once again. Eren gave a quick look to the back room door, wondering what Armin and Mikasa were doing back there.

"So..." Grisha began. "I see you have a new coworker..."

Eren was puzzled at first until the words sunk in. "Oh. Yeah. That's Mikasa. She bakes the stuff for the café. She's not been here long."

"I see. How'd you find her?"

"Well, you see...she came into the café one night to study, and she was there until I closed..."

Eren continued his tale of how he met Mikasa. Of her predicament and how she came to live in the apartment with him. Then of how Armin suggested she should try working at the café. The entire time, Grisha just watched the bright look on his son's face, having not seen it so glad since he was a little boy.

When Eren finished, Grisha spoke. "She sounds like a nice girl. I got to speak to her some before you came."

"Yeah. She's awesome." Eren replied, still smiling as he talked about his roommate.

Grisha continued to watch his son's facial expressions. "Well, it's good that you've met someone like her."

"Yeah. I agree. "She's been a great friend."

"Just...uhh...be careful, son."

Eren didn't know what to say for a few minutes, confused by what his father meant. "What do you mean?"

"It's...just...the two of you aren't children...well...you're a man...and she's...a woman..."

"No. Stop, Dad!" Eren interrupted, his face turning red as he realized what his father was trying to say. "It's not like that at all! We're...we're just friends!"

Grisha gave a nervous laugh. "I believe you, Eren. I just wanted to make sure..."

Eren sighed, in both relief and annoyance. "It's okay...you're just...being a dad."

Grisha sighed. "I suppose so. Just remember the big 'A', Eren."

'How in the fuck did the conversation even become this?!' Eren asked himself internally.

"So how about I go tell your friends that they can come out of hiding?" He asked his embarrassed son, standing up and heading toward the back.

Meanwhile, Mikasa and Armin had just finished the final touches on the birthday cake when the door opened. They quickly whirled their heads around in panic, only to be relieved that it was Grisha.

"I didn't mean to startle you kids..." he said. "Do I need to occupy him?"

"No, we just have to put the candles on now." Mikasa informed him.

"We'll be out in just a second." Armin said.

"Alright then." The older man replied before walking back over to his table where Eren waited. The young man looked up at his father in confusion.

"When are they coming out?" He asked.

"In just a bit..."

At that moment, the door opened, revealing Mikasa and Armin coming out. Eren was fixing to yell out and ask them what they'd been doing when pretty soon the evidence was in front of him.

"You guys were back there making a cake?" Eren asked.

His two friends smiled at him, confirming the answer. He looked at his surprise birthday cake and grinned.

"Fuck yeah! It's chocolate!"

Everyone gave a laugh at Eren's enthusiasm. Armin took a lighter and began to light the twenty candles that sat on top of the cake.

"Happy Birthday, Eren." Armin said when he was finished. "Make a wish."

Eren thought for a few moments before he finally made up his mind. Then he blew out the candles.

* * *

"Ya know..." Eren started. "I haven't had a homemade cake since before my mom died."

They were sitting on the couch back at the apartment, just relaxing after Eren's birthday celebration. Grisha Jaeger went back to his house to stay the night before heading back for the hospital in the morning. Armin had some things he needed to do, so he left once they were closing up the shop.

Mikasa turned to look at him. "Well, I hope it tasted alright."

"Alright? It was delicious." He complimented.

"Glad you liked it." She told him quietly. "Happy Birthday."

"Thanks."

"So what did you wish for?"

Eren looked at her and rolled his eyes. "Sorry, Mikasa. If I tell you, it won't come true."

She laughed. "Oh, yeah. Forgot about that part."

Eren watched her as she leaned back to rest her head on the back of the couch, closing her eyes.

"Hey, you're not going to sleep on me, are you?" The brunette asked her.

"No." Her eyes opened back up and looked over at him. She noticed an envelope in his hands. "What's that?"

"My dad invited me to some awards ceremony at the hospital." Eren replied as he carefully opened the envelope and pulled out the invitation. It had fancy lettering on it, announcing when and where it would take place. It was signed to allow Eren plus a guest to attend.

"You wanna go with me?" Eren asked after reading the invite. "It's in four days..."

"Huh?" Mikasa asked, a little surprised. Her cheeks turned just a faint shade of pink, as did Eren's.

"N-not as my d-date or anything..." he quickly said, worried that she might be uncomfortable with the thought. "It's just...I'd feel..better about...if someone came with me. Armin has plans already so..."

Her silence put him on edge until she answered. "Alright. What do I need to wear?"

"Ummm...it says it's a cocktail party...so...whatever girls wear to cocktail parties...?"

Mikasa couldn't suppress her giggle at his answer. "Wow. That was helpful."

"Well, all I know is that it's kinda formal...I don't know! Stop laughing at me!" Eren turned his head away from her. He felt so stupid right then that he really wished to just go on to bed.

Mikasa quit laughing and gently tapped his shoulder. "Eren? I was only kidding."

He smiled as he turned around. "I know, I was just messing with you. I'll just get Krista to help me find something tomorrow."

"Krista?"

"I used to work with her." She explained.

"I see..." Eren commented. "That's good. My fashion sense sucks."

Mikasa gave him a light pretend punch on his arm. He faked pain and rubbed where she'd hit him, both of them laughing. Their laughter died down some, and Eren found himself looking at her while she wasn't paying attention. When she finally noticed however, she grew embarrassed.

"What?" She stuttered. "Is there something on my face?"

"No...I was...just thinking..." Eren quickly replied. "You know...I feel like... Like my mother brought you to me. Or she brought me to you."

Her embarrassment faded some at his words. "What makes you think that?"

"Well...the night you lost your job..." Eren started.

"Oh, yeah...you'd already closed for the night." Mikasa recalled. "What made you come back anyway?"

"I left my phone there." Eren explained.

"Oh..." Mikasa replied. "I'm glad...that you did."

_'Same here.'_ Eren thought to himself before continuing. "But my mom always told me about how the smallest, insignificant things could change lives in the biggest ways. If I hadn't left my phone, we probably wouldn't be here tonight."

He flashed her a happy grin. "And...I'm really glad that you're here, Mikasa."

Mikasa gave a light blush at his words. "So...am I..."

Her heart thumped so hard at his words, she was sure he could hear it. After a few moments of silence, she finally stood up.

"I...I should get ready for bed...it's really late..." She told him, making her way to get her clothes.

"Hey...Mikasa?" Eren called after her. "Do you...uhh...want company again...?"

Mikasa felt herself blush, but she didn't want to refuse. The comfort that his presence brought her had allowed her the first good night sleep in years. And apparently, it must have the same impact on him.

"Okay..." she answered before continuing on her way to her room. "I'm just gonna...take a shower..."

"Okay..." Eren headed back to his own room to change. He quickly found a pair of shorts to wear and changed into them. Then he got under the covers and layed down, waiting on Mikasa.

He was nearly asleep when she finally came, once again in a T-shirt and short. She crawled into the bed next to him, whatever she'd washed with scented her body. Eren thought it smelled nice. His body was already beginning to relax, sleep coming closer and closer.

"Thanks for everything today." Eren said drowsily.

"No problem...Happy Birthday."

"Good night, Mikasa..." his voice already seemed to be drifting off into sleep. Before long, Mikasa could hear light snores coming from him. She smiled tenderly at the sound as it gently served as her own personal lullaby it seemed.

"Good night, Eren."

* * *

_**A****/N:**Well, there you go! Another new chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it._

_By the way, I'll be putting the EreMika smuts that I have left from my Wings of Smut series and put them on Tumblr or something. I'll let ya'll know when they're up for sure._

_Anyway, I hope you like! ^-^_


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: ** Hello, everyone! It's time for the latest chapter of **Roommates**! I'm quite sad to say that one of my favorite authors/ coauthor of **Roommates, Dr. Archangel **has recently stated that he won't be continuing his stories **Yggdrasil** or **Never Forget Me**. It personally breaks my heart, but he's got other things he's doing._

_You all should check out his **Attack on Dragons **audioplay. He'll be releasing it on YouTube on December 13. _

_This chapter will star a special Guest Appearance from a couple of **Blood+ **characters! Yes, I had to. Just an appearance, though I'm not turning it into a crossover._

_Anyway, peace out! :)_

* * *

"Come on, Mikasa!" Eren called to her from the front door. "We don't want to be late."

Here it was, the night that Eren's father would be awarded at the hospital he worked at. It had been only last week that Grisha had invited his son to this occasion.

The young man looked into the mirror, trying to adjust the annoying tie he had to wear. He wasn't even sure he'd put the thing on right; It'd been a long time since he'd even worn a tie.

"Dad's gonna be here any minute." He called again. "What're you doing in there?"

Eren walked into the living room to sit on the couch to wait on her as she continued to get ready. He liked Mikasa, but wondered why girls always took so long. However, he was stunned into silence as she finally emerged from the hallway.

She was wearing a short, strapless black dress that showed off much of her pale skin. To his surprise, the red scarf was as always wrapped around her neck. Her raven hair was clipped back so her bangs were out of her face. And for the first time that he'd seen, she was wearing makeup.

Of course, she was beautiful even when she wasn't wearing makeup. But right now, Eren couldn't think of seeing anyone as beautiful as she looked.

She gave him a small, self-conscious smile as she spoke to him. "Well...you look handsome."

The brunette quickly composed his awe. He needed to say something so he tried to sound confident.

"Well, I try not to. But it just keeps happening." Eren replied, forcing himself to stop staring at her body. Instead, he averted his eyes to her face and smiled. "But hey. Have you seen yourself?"

Mikasa's cheeks turned a slight pink color. "I think I'm overdressed..."

"No, no...You look...beautiful." Eren told her honestly. It also sounded better than him blurting out what he thought when he saw her, which was _'Holy shit, she looks hot.'_

"Do me a favor and finish zipping me up...will you?"

"Yeah...sure thing..." Eren replied, reaching for the zipper when she turned around so he could pull it up.

"Thanks" was all she could say before there was a knock on the door.

"Well, we better get going." Eren said, opening the door to reveal Dr. Jaeger dressed in a suit and tie himself.

"Well, Dad..." Eren commented. "Don't you look..."

"Silly?" The older man finished for his son.

"Of course not. I was thinking more on the lines of 'professional'..."

Grisha gave a small laugh. "If you say so, Eren."

Eren gestured for Mikasa to go out ahead of him while he locked the place up.

"Hello, Mr. Jaeger."

"Hello, Mikasa. You're looking quite lovely this evening."

Mikasa's cheeks turned pink again. "Thank you, sir."

Eren laughed as he came out to join them. "I don't think she's used to being complimented so much."

The oriental girl ignored her friend's teasing. "Thanks for picking us up, Dr. Jaeger."

"No problem at all. Though we'd better get going. I didn't realize I was running so late."

Eren gave Mikasa shotgun while he took a seat in the back. The older man drove them outside the small town they both called home, though it took only about thiry minutes for them to reach the hospital that Grisha worked at.

When they walked inside the mess hall of the hospital, it had been completely converted to look like some fancy reception area. The tables were rearranged and covered with fancy table clothes. One table against the wall had some small finger food, champagne, and other things. The entire room was filled with friendly chatter.

Eren looked down at Mikasa, who taking in all the sights around them. It'd been a while since he'd been to anything like this, so he was glad that she came along. He offered his arm to her so that they wouldn't get seperated, and Mikasa took it thankful.

After a few minutes, Grisha turned around to face them suddenly. "Excuse me for a moment, I must go speak to one of my colleagues."

"Go ahead, Dad." Eren replied quietly.

Grisha left the two young adults to themselves as he crossed through the crowd. Eren and Mikasa decided to hang out against the wall, considering that they didn't know anybody. Most everyone in attendance appeared to be either a doctor or a patient. Which wasn't surprising; this was a hospital.

After a few minutes, a tall woman walked over to them, with long dark blonde hair that fell to her waist. She wore a long navy blue dress with a neck line that plummeted to her stomach, exposing her cleavage. She looked as though she was in her late twenties to early thirties.

"Hey, Ms. Julia." Eren greeted casually. "How are you?"

"I'm doing fine." She answered with a smile. "It's been a long time, Eren. Last time I saw you was back when you were starting high school. How's your life?"

"It's been fine." The brunette chuckled. "A little boring with school work, but I shouldn't complain."

"Just study hard, Eren. That's the key."

"Yeah, heh. I'll be sure to do that, Ms. Julia."

The young female doctor turned her attention to Mikasa at that point. "Oh, and who's your girlfriend? You two make a cute couple."

Both Eren and Mikasa's face turned tomato red at the woman's assumption. The black haired girl looked down at her feet in embarrassment. The young man cleared his throat before responding.

"We're...not...er...dating, Ms. Julia. Mikasa is a really close friend of mine...and I asked her to come."

"Oh." The tall blonde replied. "Well, forgive me. I jumped to conclusions. It's nice to meet you though, Mikasa. I'm Dr. Julia Silverstein."

"Nice to meet you." Mikasa greeted. "Do you work with Dr. Jaeger?"

"Oh, yes. He and I have been working together for a while. He took me on as an apprentice when he first started this research team. It's an honor to work with such a brilliant man."

Mikasa wondered what kind of medical research that Eren's father had been working on. At her side, she could feel a change in Eren's atmosphere, though she couldn't recognize what the change was. They exchanged a few words before a tall older man with light blonde hair and blue eyes appeared at Dr. Julia's side.

"Julia, I've been looking for you." He said, his voice quiet yet authoritative.

"Oh, alright." The woman replied, wrapping her arm around her companion's. "I have to go help the announcer get ready. I hope I get to see you two again. Goodbye."

"Bye, Dr. Silverstein." Mikasa said.

"See ya, Ms. Julia." Eren followed. After the adults had gone, the brunette let out a chuckle.

"What?" His raven haired friend asked, confused.

"Ms. Julia finally got Mr. David to notice her apparently." He replied, his laughter dying down. "It only took the man five years to figure it out."

"Oh. Well, at least she's...persistent."

"You oughta see her at work." Eren commented. "But yeah. She met him when she started here. He worked as a security guard. She was smitten at first sight. And she tried numerous tactics to get his attention from the get-go."

"And they just now got together?" Mikasa inferred from his reaction.

"I'm telling you. The man either wasn't interested in romance, or completely oblivious."

Mikasa smiled at that comment; it reminded her of a comment her mother had made when she told her the story of how she'd met her father. Men usually did seem ignorant to that type of emotion.

Eren's father returned to them shortly after. "Sorry about that. I just needed to run something by one of the doctors I've been working with."

"It's cool, Dad." Eren replied.

The three of them made sure to go out and mingle with everyone in attendance. There were even a few current patients that were present, though not many. Soon it came time for the ceremony to begin as the head nurse of the hospital stepped up onto the raised platform to speak into the microphone.

"Good evening, everyone. And welcome to tonight's ceremony."

The entire crowd grew silent as the nurse continued with the introductory speech. Fairly soon, names were being called out for numerous awards that the patients had voted on. Each recipient gave a small speech, showing their gratitude for their being chosen. It wasn't long before Eren and Mikasa heard his father's name being called.

"Dr. Grisha Jaeger. Patients' choice for most determined and devoted."

Grisha nervously adjusted his tie before he made his way up to the platform, his expression unreadable. Eren and Mikasa both joined in the applause as his father walked up to the platform. He stepped onto the small platform and took the small plaque that was handed to him.

Dr. Jaeger cleared his throat before he spoke. "Thank you for this beautiful award, but in my personal opinion i don't deserve this."

The audience gave a few laughs at his modesty while the doctor paused for a moment.

"I'm serious, I really don't." He continued, and the firmness of his tone caught everyone's attention, especially his son's. They all fell silent, waiting for the doctor to continue.

"My wife died from breast cancer, and the price was much heavier than you believe. Carla Jaeger, my own wife may be dead, but I also lost my own son in the process."

Mikasa stole a glance at the young man mentioned, his green eyes wide with surprise. She had little knowledge of the all the emotions that he felt at that moment.

"He's not dead. He's actually right here in this crowd." Grisha explained immediately to the crowd to avoid any misconceptions. "I invited him here so I can tell you all... that I must cut back my hours."

The reaction from the crowd was surprise at the doctor's statement. No one in the audience seemed to know how to respond.

"It's high time I see to my son again, after all these years." Grisha continued as he concluded his small speech. "Thank you."

With that, Dr. Grisha Jaeger stepped down into the crowd. He made his way back to the rear of the crowd to rejoin his son and Mikasa.

"Congratulations, Dad." Eren replied, trying not to choke on the rush of emotions he was feeling. "You deserve it."

"I'm not so sure about that." Grisha replied somewhat grimly.

"Dad..." Eren said in barely above a whisper. Grisha looked up, appearing almost too ashamed to look in his son's eyes. But when they did, Eren hugged the older man without warning.

"Eren?" Grisha asked, a little worried because the young man was shaking in his arms.

"You...deserve it." Eren began, his words stuttered. "You helped so many people...you prevented so many others from experiencing the same pain we felt when Mom got sick...Dad, you're a hero in...so many people's eyes...and in my eyes, too..."

Grisha seemed on the verge of tears while Eren was already crying, biting down hard on his lip to keep quiet. All around them, the ceremony continued but the father and son seemed to be in their own world in that moment. As soon as Eren quieted down, they released their hold on each other.

"Now..." Grisha said, addressing both his son and Mikasa, who had been turned away, giving the two men some privacy. "I think we can leave now..."

"Okay, Dad." Eren quietly replied, his giant, warm hand reaching out toward Mikasa's tiny cool hand. Her gaze immediately drifted to Eren's face, his expression deeply happy.

She couldn't help but smile herself at seeing his happiness.

* * *

"It was nice of your dad to treat us to dinner." Mikasa said as she sat down on the couch after they got back inside the apartment. She immediately took off the high heels that Krista had matched and picked out for her, as well as the dress that she currently wore.

"Yeah. I enjoyedt that." the young man agreed as he shut the door behind him.

Eren shrugged his jacket off and threw it on a nearby chair. His hands struggled to loosen the annoying tie around his neck. Mikasa laughed when his motions proved useless before gesturing for him to sit down beside her. Her hands went to his neck to undo the tie, and she proved successful.

"Thanks." Eren replied, relieved that he didn't have the thing wrapped around him anymore. He leaned back onto the stereo suddenly clicked on, startling them both. Eren quickly got up and dug beneath the couch cushions until he pulled out a small remote.

"Dammit, I get so tired of this thing falling under here." Eren grumbled, causing his friend to laugh. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine. The music is kinda nice. It sounds old."

"It is." Eren replied as he sat down again. "This is actually one of my mom's favorite CDs. She majored in music in college, and she really loved older music."

Mikasa looked over at him, seeing his face deep in thought as he continued to talk. "When I was little, she actually taught me how to slow dance to this type of music. She joked and said she was preparing me for a slow dance at prom."

He sat forward, putting his elbows on his knees and sighed. "But those lessons proved a sort of waste in the fact I never went to prom."

"Really?" the girl beside him asked.

"Yeah. I didn't like any girls in high school, and it seemed stupid to go alone." he turned his gaze toward her. "What about you? You were probably voted the prom queen, right?"

She looked down at her hands, which were folded on top her lap. "I didn't go to prom either."

"What?" Eren asked, stunned by this confession. "I'm...a little surprised..."

"Why?"

"Did no one ask you? Or..." He found it rather hard to believe that no one had asked her, but he didn't know another reason of why she wouldn't go.

Mikasa gave a deep breath before replying. "To be honest, after my parents died...I never gave much thought to anything other than school. Neither of them finished, so that's why when I was younger, they wanted me to do my best. I wanted to make them proud, so I worked and studied constantly. Everything else...I just never payed attention to..."

This was unexpected. But Eren could understand that. He lost any desire to even watch dancing after his mom had passed. Mikasa had it a lot harder, considering her parents were taken from her; he at least was able to say 'goodbye' to his mom.

"I can understand that." he replied before conversation dwindled, leaving only the music to fill the room.

"This is 'Maybe' by the Inkspots." Eren commented as a new song began to fill the room. After a few moments of silence, he suddenly stood up, startling the girl beside him. He turned to face her, a shy smile on his face.

"May I have the pleasure?" He asked shyly, holding his hand out toward her.

"Wh-what?" Mikasa asked. "But..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Eren had already pulled her to her feet to stand in front of hI'm. He noticed the hesitation on her face. "What's wrong?"

She took a step back. "I've never danced before. At all."

He gave a small chuckle. "That's it? It'll be okay. I'll help you out."

"But-"

"Come on. Just follow my lead, Mikasa. That's all there is to it."

The raven haired girl bit her lip in hesitation before she finally gave a slight nod. She put her hands on his waist awkwardly. "I don't even know where to put my hands. I must look like a total dork."

Eren chuckled, his hands enclosing around her wrists and leading them up to his shoulders.

"This...actually is where you put your hands." He told her, calm on the outside but a nervous wreck on the inside as his own hands moved to rest at her waist. Eren initiated the dance, leading her through each step. He could tell Mikasa was lost when they first began. She actually stepped on his toes a couple of times, flushing in embarrassment.

"I can't do this, Eren. It's too complicated..."

"Mikasa...look at my face." Eren finally said. He waited patiently until she did as he asked. "Don't worry about your feet. Just look at my face. You trust me, right?"

"Of course I trust you..." she answered immediately.

"Then look at my face and don't worry about your feet."

"O...kay."

Mikasa was still nervous, worried that she'd step on his feet again. But she took his advice and stared into his green eyes. He stared back into her onyx eyes as he led her through each step. Even when the next song "If I Didn't Care" by the Inkspots began.

He could feel her body slowly relax as she seemed to grow accustomed to the movement. In fact, the look in her eyes told him that she was enjoying this.

"You did great." He complimented her as their grasp on each other lingered for a few moments.

His compliment caused her to blush and look down. "You helped me so..."

She reluctantly dropped her arms at the same time as him. Mikasa quietly picked up her shoes off the ground and started to head back to her bedroom before stopping. She turned back around to face Eren, another small blush on her face.

"Say...Eren?" Mikasa asked timidly. "Will...you do me a favor...?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Can you...unzip the back of my dress? I can't reach it."

Eren turned bright red at the request. But he did recall her not being able to zip it completely up before they let earlier. "Ye-yeah sure..."

She turned around, her back facing him. He slowly, hesitantly reached his hand out to the zipper that trailed along her back. She tried not to jump when his hand brushed against the bare skin of her back, but his touch sent a jolt of electricity through her.

"Is...this low enough...Mikasa?" he asked awkwardly.

"Y-yes. Thank you." She replied, holding the front so that it wouldn't accidentally expose her chest. "Umm...there's something else that I want to ask...do you want to sleep in my room tonight? I'd just like some company..."

"Sure...no problem." Eren replied. "I'll go get out of my...penguin suit..."

Mikasa laughed at his comment, and turned back around to go to her room. As soon as she stepped inside, she hunted for a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, as she always did when getting ready for bed. She quickly changed and hung the dress up on the closet door. The events of tonight suddenly flooded back into her mind, and she smiled.

It had been a wonderful night.

She walked back over to the door to open it, and saw Eren already heading back to her room. He came in quietly, giving her a shy grin when he looked at her. They both climbed into her bed, getting underneath the covers.

"Did you have fun tonight?" Eren murmured to her after a few moments of silence.

"Mhm..."

"So did I..."

"That's good..." Mikasa replied, her voice indicating that she was drifting off into sleep.

It wasn't long after that, her quiet breathing filled the room, indicating that she was asleep. The brown haired boy smiled at the sound. He slowly sat up, so he wouldn't disturb her, and looked over at her peaceful, sleeping face.

He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Good night, Mikasa."

Eren then quietly laid back down and slipped into his own peaceful sleep.

* * *

_**A/N: **There ya have it! Chapter...tbh I don't remember what chapter LOL xD. Seven, I think?_

_I hope none of that seemed corny as shit. I personally thought that this chapter would be kinda cute and all. _

_Someone asked me last chapter what Grisha meant by the big 'A' so I'll explain it real quick. The big 'A' is referring to the term 'abstinence' and means to refrain from doing something. In other words, Grisha was telling Eren to not have sex. It was an idea I got from the movie "Meet the MIllers" LOL xD_

_Like I said, hope it's not corny. _

_See ya next time :D_


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